L

by Nigel D. Findley

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction ............................ 2 Void Elves ........................... .32

Letters of Marque ...................... 3 Monarch Armada ..................... .35
Chapter 1: Pirates & Corsairs ............... 6 Time Capsule ........................ .42
Flying Colors .......................... 6 The Outpost ......................... .43
Small Package Trade .................... 10 Jihad! ............................... 50
Pirate Wyrm .......................... 13 Chapter 4: Monsters of the Void . . . . . . . . . . . .54
Bloody Vikings ........................ 14 Billy Bones .......................... .54
Fire & I c e ............................. 16 Parasite! ............................ .54
Chapter 2: Relics & Hulks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Chapter 5: Rewards and Revenge . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 8
Violent Death ......................... 19 x
................................... 58
Forgotten But Not Gone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 4 Cain ................................. 59
Sojourn A m o n g the Stars ............... . 2 7
Chapter 3: Starfaring Races ............... .30 New Monster: Death Shade . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 6 3
The Brain Trade ....................... .30 New Monster: Space Drake ............... .64

CREDITS
Design: Nigel D. Findley
Editing: Steven Schend, Anne Brown
Cover Art: Brom
Interior Art: Paul Abrams
Cartography: Diesel
Graphic Design: Stephanie Tabat
Typography: Angelika Lokotz
I

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Eight bells. The chime sounded
clearly in the cabin of Derek An-
grislic. Captain Derek Angrislic.
The owner of the cabin looked up
from the small desk where he’d been
filling out the ship’s log. A roguish
grin spread across his handsome face
and reached his twinkling eyes. Eight
bells. His ship, Silent Witness, should
be almost up with the fleeing illithid
nautiloid by now.
Derek’s smile now grew more pred-
atory than roguish. His eyes still
flashed, but no longer with humor. H e
shouldn’t even be involved in this pur-
suit. The matter should have ended al-
most a s soon a s it began. That illusion
that gave the illithids time to-
almost-escape . . . he should have
recognized it for what it was. That’s
what a captain was supposed to do:
make correct decisions, all the time,
every time.
At least the initial combat had gone
well, and his crew had deported them-
selves well. As the nautiloid slowed to
make its way through the inner debris
ring of this oh-so-strange system, the
Silent Witness-an elven Man-o’-war
that Derek had, er, acquired through
some rather intricate triple-dealing-
slipped out from behind one of the
larger planet-fragments, and the fight
was on. Derek was operating under
letters of marque from his govern-
ment, so his crew was liberally sprin-
kled with battle-hardened, gov-
ernment Marines (the joys of working
with the authorities for once). The first
rounds from his medium catapults
had torn holes in the enemy’s rigging,
and jettison fire had cut down the
nautiloid’s heavy weapons crews. As
the ships drew nearer, Derek’s mage,
another government appointee. had
sent necromantic death across the
ether to seek out the illithids’ helms-
men.
Just when victory was within reach,
the other nautiloids had swung out
From behind the planet-fragments: a
picture-perfect reverse ambush! Un-
der Derek’s command, the Silent Wit-
ness maneuvered, fired, and moved to
engage the new, undamaged attack-
ers. By the time anyone realized that
the new attackers were merely illu-
sions, albeit illusions of a somewhat
Frightening scope, the true nautiloid
was underway and attempting to clear
the debris belt so it could go to spell-
jamming speed.
The nautiloid would not escape-
not if Derek could help it. His ship was
faster and more maneuverable. The
nautiloid had racked up a decent lead,
and a stern chase was always slow, but
the outcome was simply a matter of
time.
Captain Derek Angrislic closed the
log and laid his hand against the iri-
descent ceramic bulkhead. The Silent
Witness felt charged with power and
promise. Its anticipation seemed to
match his own . . .
DM INFORMATION
Welcome back to the SPELWAMMER”
universe! Skull & Crossbows is the second
adventure in the SPELWAMMER game
system. It provides adventures and
encounters for the SPELWAMMER uni-
verse, highlighting pirates and corsairs,
ghost ships, new monsters, and old mon-
sters in a new light.
In general, these adventures are in-
tended for an average party of four to six
characters, levels 6-10.They are stand-
alone adventures, not tied to any partic-
ular campaign universe (Krynn, the
Forgotten Realms, o r t h e World of
Greyhawk). This ensures that all DMs
can find this material equally useful and
don’t have to d o any extra work to align
it to the politics of their campaign
world.
Skull & Crossbows can be used a s a
continuation of the campaign started in
Wildspace (SJAl), with the PCs possibly
in command of the good ship Skyrunner.
It can also be played independently from
Wildspace, but these adventures take
place in the Flow, wildspace, and on
worlds in as-yet undiscovered spheres,
so the PCs must already own or be on
board a spelljamming vessel. Pages 7-9
of Lorebook of the Void contain many al-
ternate ways for PCs to enter the
SPELWAMMER campaign. For exam-
ple, the tradition of the press gang has
migrated into space, and a ship that has
lost crew in a battle will probably be will-
ing to “hire” veteran adventurers regard-
less of any spacefaring experience.
Adventure Format
The first adventure in the book, “Let-
ters of Marque,” is an introduction to
some interesting NPCs, and a way for the
DM to lead the PCs into a career of
pirate-hunting. This adventure comes to
completion in the final adventure,
“Cain.”
The majority of Skull & Crossbows is a
“grab-bag” of adventures in which the
PCs bring safety t o the space lanes. Many
relate directly to the PCs’ pirate-hunting,
but others are encounters that the DM
can use at any time. This provides the
DM with the a large amount of flexibility
to choose which adventures to use and
the order in which they appear. Each
chapter contains multiple adventures re-
lated to a central topic (Pirates & Cor-
sairs, for example, or Relics & Hulks),
giving the DM a variety of encounter
types to choose from.
Each adventure has a number of “set-
ups:” possible entry points by which the
PCs get involved in the action. Most set-
ups assume that the PCs command their
own vessel, and at least one setup will
have plot ties to “Letters of Marque.”
Each adventure has suggested levels for
the PCs involved and details on recom-
mended ship types. After all, there’s little
sport in sending two PCs in a mosquito
ship up against a neogi deathspider!
Terminology
Most adventures involve ship to ship
encounters between spelljamming ves-
sels. For ease in discussing these
encounters, several standard terms
should be defined:
Bearing
This refers to the position of another
object with respect to the bow or axis of
your vessel. It conveys no information
about which way the other object is trav-
elling.
Since space combat takes place in
three dimensions, the bearing of an ob-
ject has two components: angle to port
or starboard (left or right) of your vessel’s
bow, and angle above or below your ves-
sel’s gravity plane. A complete bearing
might be expressed a s “Enemy vessel
30’ to port and 15’ high!” A lookout-
usually in something of a hurry-might
just call “Enemy vessel high on the port
bow.”
Figure 1 indicates an object at a bear-
ing of 45O starboard and level with the
ship’s gravity plane.
 Heading
This is the direction in which a vessel
or an object is moving. The most precise
way to express the heading of another
vessel is in relation to the heading of
your own vessel. The convention is to la-
bel the direction in which your vessel is
travelling as Oo, and to count degrees in
a clockwise direction.
Since space is three-dimensional,you
again need two components to precisely
describe the heading of a ship: one where
90° is directly to starboard(see Figure 2)
and one where 90° is directly overhead.
Determining and expressing heading is
often complex, and, in the heat of battle,
Figure 1: shorthand methods are used: ”She’s
Beari ng heading directly away from us, Captain,”
or “She’s on a collision course!”
Figure 3 illustrates two enemy vessels
0’
which both have headings of 135O.
Letters of Marque
Setting: Rock of Bra1
Party: 4-6 characters; levels 4-10
Ship: Any
Setups
270°
The PCs are spending some time on
the Rock of Bral, perhaps recovering
from the hardships of the Wildspace ad-
venture, or simply looking for a little
RGR. They are currently enjoying the di-
versions of a rough tavern near the land-
Figure 2: ing docks called “The Rockrat.” (Perhaps
Heading Scale the PCs’ tastes already run in this direc-
tion, or perhaps they have other reasons
for slumming.)
The PCs are on the Rock of Bral. A
messenger delivers an invitation to a
business meeting, in which they will
learn about a potentially lucrative busi-
ness opportunity. The meeting is that
evening in a tavern called “The Rockrat.”
Neither the message nor the messenger
can give the PCs any hint as to who
they’ll be meeting or what the opportu-
nity may be, but the messenger is pre-
pared to give the party 1-6 platinum
pieces as token of the correspondent’s
earnest.
The Rockrat. You’ve never been to
180’
~~~
I this filthy, decaying bar before, but
you know it well. You’ve seen it many
Figure 3: times before. It’s a portside tavern,
plain and simple, and the fact that this
Heading Example
port fronts the depths of wildspace
rather than the depths of an ocean
makes little difference. It’s a place for
crews to lose some money, drink your-
self blind, and maybe, just maybe, get
into a nice, diverting brawl.
You hesitate in. the doorway a rno-
ment, looking around for any old ac-
quaintancesamong the patrons. Not a
friendly soul to be found. As you en-
ter, a mountain of flesh blocks your
way. “Weapons,” the obstacle growls.
“Checkem or lose’ern.”
Grinder
The obstacle is the bouncer, an ogre
named Grinder. The Rockrat has a pol-
icy: no weapons inside. Everything even
remotely offensive must be checked at
the door and stored in a small room un-
der the guard of Grinder. It is more than
the ogre’s job is worth to let anyone get
by armed . . . and he values his job.
Grinder (Ogre): AC 2; MV 9; F9;hp 80;
#AT 3/2; Drng by weapon (club (1-6),
shortsword (1-6)) +6 Str bonus; Str
18(00), Dex 13, Con 18, Int 9, Wis 7, Cha
13; AL N; THACO 12. Grinder is eight
feet tall with gray skin, and the bulges of
his muscles have bulges on them. He
wears a nicely-tailored uniform that
looks totally out of place at The Rockrat.
The sleeves of the uniform conceal a pair
of ogre-sized bracers of defense AC2. He
is totally loyal to his employer, and will
respond violently to any attempted
bribes.
Grinder won’t physically search the
PCs; he knows that most of the tavern’s
usual patrons wouldn’t put up with that
affront. Obviously, he won’t let anyone
enter with weapons such as swords, but
he is unlikely to catch every concealed
throwing knife or boot dirk. If the PCs
want to smuggle weapons inside, they
probably can do it. The idea of this
search is to eliminate such major weap-
ons as two-handed swords and wheel
lock pistols.
PCs armed with magic or otherwise
valuable weapons are unlikely to agree
to leaving them in the care of Grinder.
That’s not the ogre’s problem. If they
don’t want to live by the tavern’s rules,
which are for their own protection, he
will point out that they are free to drink
elsewhere.
Note: The intention here is not to get
the PCs into a confrontation with
Grinder, but to prevent the PCs from
chopping down any of the NPCs they’ll
meet hereafter. Grinder’s charisma is
high for an ogre, and this makes it possi-
ble for him to help the PCs see reason. If
the PCs protest, read them the following:
As you begin to protest the removal
of your weapons, a robed figure qui-
etly moves between you and Grinder.
“Evening, Grinder,” the mage says in a
cracking voice. “Take care of Storm-
fire for me, will you?”
“Be glad to. Your table’s waiting,”
Grinder says to the mage, taking his
staff and letting him pass. “Now,
what’s your problem with our policy?”
Grinder takes his job very seriously.
Just as he won’t let anyone in without
checking their weapons, he won’t let any
“friends” make off with weapons that
don’t belong to them. As an employee of
the establishment, he’s entitled to be
armed: he carries a club and has a short
sword sheathed on his belt.
Once the PCs have passed Grinder,
read the following:
The Rockrat’s ceilings are low, and
probably were white once; the
kindori-oil lamps and the interesting
selection of pipe blends burning
around the room have certainly
changed that. The floor is covered
with a light coating of sawdust to sop
up spilled drinks and other fluids. The
tables are heavy, the rough wood ex-
tensively embellished with initials,
names and generally tasteless graffiti.
The patrons match their environ-
ment: seedy, rather the worse for
wear, and almost humming with an
undercurrent of violence, barely re-
pressed. Of the twenty or so pairs of
eyes you can see, only two or three
aren’t dulled with alcohol.
Most customers are run-of-the-mill
deck hands, many of them drinking
away the bounty money they received
for signing on with a new ship. In
twelve hours, most will be a-sail and
sweating green, with pounding heads.
Only the occupants of two tables are
different. One table, near the door, is
taken by two middle-aged men,
dressed in simple, dark, knee-length
blue tunics. There are marks on the
waists of their tunics where sword
belts used to be buckled.
The other table, in a back corner, is
much less austere. There are five fig-
ures around it, four of whom are ap-
proaching the final stages of
intoxication. The four are a tough-
looking lot: all humans, but big
enough to rival Grinder pound for
pound. Their outfits are as mis-
matched as anyone’s around the tav-
ern, save the black leather vest that
each wears. The fifth occupant of the
table is of a different cut entirely.
Stone cold sober, he seems, and his
eyes are as hard and cold as an arctic
icecap. He wears tight fitting black
leathers, the only flash of color being
a red bandanna at his throat. As you
enter, the occupants of the table look
you over, most with varying degrees
of drunken hostility, but one with cold
appraisal.
You make your way to a table to-
ward the center of the bar. A barwench
who looks tough enough to offer
Grinder a few problems clears her
throat noisily. “Well, what’ll it be to-
night?”
Gort
As soon as the PCs have entered the
bar, and before they can get involved in
anything elsewhere, one of the occu-
pants of the far table struggles to his feet
and staggers over toward the PCs.
Pig-like eyes-so bloodshot as to
resemble red-veined marble-regard
you unsteadily. ‘‘Well,” the figure
grunts, alcohol heavy on his breath, “I
guess your mothers let you stay out
late tonight.”
This man is named Gort, and he is
drunk enough to want to goad any PC
into a fight with him. He will continue his
verbal abuse until someone in the PCs’
party takes a poke at him. If he can’t do
that, he’ll pick the largest and toughest-
looking PC and take a swing at him.
Gort: AC 10;MV 12; F7; hp 41; #AT31
2; Dmg by weapon (knife) + 1 Str bonus;
Str17,Dexll,Conl4,Int 10,Wis6,Cha
7; AL NE; THACO 14.
Gort is a big, ugly, bald.headed brute,
covered with enough scars to hint at a
less than temperate past.
However the fight starts, neither com-
batant should be armed (at first), so the
only option is non-lethal combat; use the
“Punching and Wrestling” table on page
59 of the Dungeon Master’s Guide for this
encounter. Once Gort suffers some mi-
nor damage at the hands of the PC, read
the following:
The big man roars and pulls away
from you. Suddenly, something is in
his hand, catching the light: a sharp,
wicked-looking blade. He roars again
and lunges.
Gort has drawn a knife which was con-
cealed in his boot. The crowd reacts to
this breach of rules in the usual manner:
they draw back to a safe distance and
start placing bets. Before the other PCs
can interfere, and before either combat-
ant can kill the other, read the following:
“Gort!” The word sounds like the
crack of a whip. The black-clad man at
the far table is on his feet, and his
flinty eyes are hard and cold. “Gort!”
he snaps again.
The big man with the knife hesi-,
tates, and is promptly disarmed by
Grinder. The drunken men slowly
shamble out, coaxed along by
Grinder’s short sword. The man in
black, their captain, you presume, ap-
praises you coldly, and also leaves.
“Animals.” The voice comes from
behind you. You turn to see the two
austere, dark-clad gentlemen stand-
ing behind you. “Do you know who
they are? Who he is?”
“Cain,” his younger partner repeats,
and spits on the already much spit-
upon floor. “Pirate.”
“May I?’’ the older man asks as he
slips into a seat at your table. “I have a
proposition that might be of interest
to individuals courageous enough to
take it up. And I think I might have
found some . . . I’
The “Pots”
The two men are members of the Prag-
matic Order of Thought (called the
“Pots” by its detractors). The older is Jas-
son, the younger his protege Wallis. If the
PCs show even the slightest interest in
hearing Jasson’s proposition, read the
following:
“If you know anything about the
Pragmatic Order of Thought,” the
older man says, “you will know that

one of our central precepts is that
travel and trade should be unre-
stricted. Only through this freedom
will we see the universe develop in the
unfettered, unbounded way in which
we think it must. Unfortunately, this
freedom which we see as so essential
is being infringed.”
The younger man interrupts
abruptly, “By them,” he snarls, gestur-
ing over his shoulder with a thumb to-
ward where Cain and his crew were
sitting. “The pirates.”
“My protege is correct,” Jasson
agrees calmly. “We believe that the pi-
rates who hunt wildspace are the
greatest single obstacle to free and ef-
ficient trade between the shells. We
believe it is our responsibility and our
privilege to do our small part to solve
this problem. Thus we come to our
proposition.”
Jasson places a leather dispatch
case on the table before you. “In here I
have letters of marque,” he tells you,
“officially notarized by my superior in
the Order and by Prince Andru of Bra1
himself. Do you know what letters of
marque are?”
Again the younger man jumps in.
“They are official permission to make
war on all pirates,” he tells you. “Your
right to engage them and to deal with
them as you will is unchallenged.”
“Also,” Jasson adds, “these letters
also entitle you to quite a substantial
bounty whenever you bring in one of
these wolves of wildspace . . . either
dead or alive. You may also, of course,
keep whatever you can take from
these reavers. I would ask you to ac-
cept these letters . . . ”
Jasson holds up a hand to still your
response. “But before you do, there is
more to our offer. If you currently
command a ship, the Order will pay
for a complete refit and repair at the
Rock‘s construction docks. If you cur-
rently are, shall we say, between ships,
I am authorized to tell you that the Or-
der will supply a ship. Will you, now,
accept our proposition?”
Jasson: AC 5; MV 9; F9; hp 46; #AT 31
2; Dmg by weapon; AL NG;THACO 12.
Wallis: AC 5; MV 9; F6; hp 40; #AT 1;
Dmg by weapon; A L CG; THACO 15.
Both “Pots” wear chain mail under
their tunics. Although unarmed while in-
side the bar, they normally carry long
swords. “These are your letters,” he tells
Jasson and Wallis will answer any you. “Four copies, in case you wish to
questionsthe PCs care to ask them. They commission other ships to assist you.
are truly members of the Pots, and can It is important to stress one thing.
supply complete verification that the let- These letters entitle you to war on ves-
ters are authentic. They also supply the sels in wildspace or in the Flow. They
PCs with a list of notorious pirates and do not authorize attacks or assassina-
the bounties on each one, but they can tion attempts against anyone when
give the PCs no information about where they are not on a vessel underway.
these pirates can be found. The pirates Thus, you could not have killed the pi-
on the Pots’ hit list are: rate Cain in the tavern and expected
to be covered under letters of marque.
Pirate Ship Bounty “Er . . . ” Jasson clears his throat,
Tal Barracuda 8,000 and for the first time you see the man
hesitate. “There is one small addition
Gilgalad (Hammership) SP
Erik? Rauen 5,000 to the letters,” he says almost apolo-
(Groundling ship) gp getically. “Just a trifle, but Prince An-
? Frostfire 7,000 dru insisted upon it. These letters also
give you full authority and, in fact,
(Squidship) SP
Manara Nex 10,000 urge you to make war on any vessels
that you know to belong to the merce-
(Galleon) SP nary company the Tenth Pit. But,” he
Cain Rampage 10,000
goes on, suddenly firm again, “be that
(Hammership) SP as it may, may what gods there are
True to their word, Jasson and Wallis look kindly upon your brave mission.
will arrange to pay for repair and refits to Fare you well.”
the PCs’ vessel (should they have one).
They will pay for repairs and mainte-
nance, plus resupply. They won’t pay for Concluding the Adventure
a complete re-arm or for serious modifi-
In fact, the conclusion of this adven-
cations such as a new major helm, plat-
ture is the beginning of others. The deal
ing, etc. If the PCs have no vessel, the
with the Order will remain in force until
Order will turn over to them a simple, un-
one side or the other cancels it for good
modified Tradesman armed with a light
cause. If the PCs wish to claim bounty on
catapult and a light ballista. In neither
a pirate, they must literally bring the per-
case will the Order pay for the hiring of
son (or persons) in, either dead or alive.
additional crew; that is entirely up to the
For more information on the Prag-
PCs (Note that a Tradesman requires a
matic Order of Thought and the Tenth Pit
minimum crew of 10 to run properly, so
mercenary company, consult the Lore-
PCs may need to hire a crew).
book of the Void, pages 51 and 52.
Bon Voyage
When the refit is complete, or when
the PCs are about to take possession of
their new ship, Jasson meets them for
the last time. He has in his possession the
letters of marque. Read the following:
Jasson looks considerably more
imposing than he did when you first
saw him in the port-side bar. He wears
a mail coif over his silver hair and a
bejewelled long sword at his side. He
hands you four sheets of parchment,
each covered with fine calligraphy
and bearing two elaborate seals: one
of the Order and one of Prince Andru
himself.
 Contrary to common belief, there is a
significant difference between a pirate,
and a corsair or privateer. By definition, a
pirate is anyone who robs or commits il-
legal violence at sea (or in space). Thus,
nearly any unscrupulous person can be a
pirate: simply acquire a ship and go plun-
der the spaceways.
In contrast, a corsair or privateer is de-
fined as one hired or commissioned by a
government to attack or harass enemy
ships. A privateer, then, is an official in-
strument of national policy, given au-
thority by documents called “letters of
marque” to act as a pirate . . . but only
against enemy vessels. (Historically,
France, England, Spain and Portugal fre-
quently sent forth corsairs to harass each
other’s shipping.) A privateer will usually
hoist his own country’s flag while in
action, whereas a pirate may sail under
false colors long enough to get close to
his target.
Apart from the official niceties, how-
ever, there are few differences between
pirates and privateers . . . particularly if
your ship happens to be their selected
prey. Perhaps it’s more important to real-
ize that not all pirates are human or even
humanoid, and not all pirates need
ships. . .
Flying Colors
Setting: Wildspace
Party: 4-6 characters, levels 6-8
Ship: Any (30 tons + recommended)
Setups
The PCs have heard rumors that one
of the pirates on their bounty list-Tal
Gilgalad-is operating in a certain re-
gion of wildspace. They are now investi-
gating that area, travelling at tactical
(not spelljamming) speed.
The PCs are commanding, or serv-
ing on, a ship currently in wildspace, and
travelling at tactical (not spelljamming)
speed.
“Captain!” the lookout yells. “Ves-
sel high on the port bow.”
You train your eyes on the area in
question, above and to the left of your
ship’s main axis. Nothing . . .
Yes, there it is, momentarily catch-
ing the light of distant suns as it rna-
neuvers toward you. You recognize it
at once: a Hammership. The vessel is
painted night-black, making it diffi-
cult to spot against the ebony back-
drop of wildspace. But there, on the
mainmast, is a bright splash of
color. . .
Any character with a telescope or en-
hanced distance vision can see that the
flash of color is a flag, and can immedi-
ately recognize it. It is the flag of a nearby
world (or state) that is considered peace-
ful. (The DM must choose an appropriate
candidate based on current circum-
stances. Some suggestions are Sembia
in the Realms or the Prelacy of Almor in
the world of Greyhawk.)
The Hammership is 7,000 yards (14
hexes) distant when first spotted. Its
bearing is 30” to the left of the PCs’
ship’s heading.
The Hammership is on an intercept
course with the PCs’ vessel, travelling at
a speed of 2 hexes per round. No crew are
visible on deck, and no major weapons
appear to be loaded.
The Good Ship Barracuda
Despite its peaceful approach, the
Hammership’s intentions are far from
peaceful. It is, in fact, the pirate ship Bar-
racuda, commanded by a rogue elf
named Tal Gilgalad.
The Barracuda fits the normal statis-
tics for a Hammership, except a third
heavy catapult has been installed just be-
hind the cargo doors. lt is mounted on a
rotating turret, allowing it to fire in any
direction except directly forward (be-
cause of the mainmast). This third cata-
pult is always manned and loaded.
Except during combat, it is disguised by
aphantasmalforce spell (cast by a gnome
illusionist on the crew) as a secondary
wheelhouse.
Tal Gilgalad has also equipped the ship
with a minor helm, as back-upin case the
major helm goes down. This is installed
in the first officer’s quarters.
Captain and Crew
Tal Gilgalad: AC 6; MV 9; F 8 N 2 ; hp
56; #AT 3/2;Dmg by weapon (long sword
( 1 - Q wheel lock pistol (1-4)) or spell; Str
15, Dex 15, Con 12, Int 15, Wis 10, Cha
17; spells: burning hands, affect normal
fires; AL NE; THACO 13. He wears scale
mail and carries a long sword and a pair
of wheel lock pistols (these are more for
appearance’s sake than practicality; Tal
knows how undependable the pistols
are).
Tal Gilgalad is a young firebrand of an
elf, no more than 250 years old. He was
raised “dirtside” by parents who believed
more in the power of the word than of the
sword. They believed so steadfastly that
they refused to take up arms when their
homeland was invaded by orcs, and died
at the hands of the invaders. Tal, a youth
of less than a score summers, managed
to escape to the mountains, where he
eked out an existence for a number of
years. The orcish invaders were eventu-
ally driven out and Tal could return to el-
vish civilization, but the damage was
already done. The major lesson he
learned from his sojourn in the wilder-
ness was that the universe is not a kind
place, and the only creatures who get
what they want are those who take it.
When the Barracuda put down near
Tal’s home, looking for replacement
crewmembers, Tal signed on immedi-
ately. He impressed captain and crew
alike with his initiative and competence
. . .and chilled them with his frightening
indifference to taking life. While he
wouldn’t go out of his way to kill and
would spare the lives of those victims
who surrendered to him all their valu-
ables, he would not even think twice
about slaying anyone who stood between
him and his spoils. When the pirate cap-
tain was killed in an encounter with a
neogi mindspider (which the Barracuda
survived only through Tal’s quick think-
ing), Tal Gilgalad took over command,
with the full support of his crew.
Since then, the Barracuda has racked
up many scores throughout the space-
ways. Tal hits only ships that he believes
are full of plunder. If the target strikes its
colors and hands over everything of
value, Tal lets the emptied ship go. Tal
will demand the target’s entire cargo,
plus anything of value possessed by the
crew or passengers, particularly magical
items. He normally considers prisoners
too much trouble, and will consider
changing this policy only under the rar-
est of circumstances (for example, if he
realizes that someone aboard his target
can be safely ransomed for a large sum).
If, however, the target decides to fight,
Tal will willingly destroy the vessel
and kill all its crew if that’s what it takes
to acquire its cargo.
Tal Gilgalad’s crew is led by four
officers-Berwick, Hallan Deepdelf. Lara
Mooncrow and Vissq. His spelljamming
helmsman is a woman who calls herself
Manta. Thirty-four crack crewmembers
complete the ship’s complement of 40.
Most of the crew have sailed with Tal for
some time, and all are experts at space-
faring maneuvers and mayhem; their
morale is 13.
The Officers
Berwick AC 5: MV 9 F9;hp 71; #AT 31
2; Dmg by weapon (two-handedsword (1 -
lo), hand crossbow (1-3)) + 1 Str bonus;
Str17,Dexll,Con16,Int13,Wis9,Cha 19. Hallan the gnome wears leather ar-
15; AL N; THACO 12. He wears chain
mail and carries a two-handed sword. A
hand crossbow always hangs from his
belt. He is a good-looking human of mid-
dle age, with black hair streaked with
grey. Despite his great strength, he does
not appear at all musclebound.
Berwick is a veteran space-going mer-
cenary, and has served Tal for seven
years now as first officer. Although well
versed in shipto-ship tactics, his great-
est value is in leading boarding parties
(boarding party morale +3).
Hallan Deepdelf: AC 6; MV 12; T4/
W(1)4; hp 19; #AT 1; Dmg by weapon
(short sword (1-6), dagger (1-4)) or spell;
Str 10, Dex 16, Con 11, Int 16, Wis 11,
Cha 14; spells: change self, color spray,
phantasmal force, uentriloquism; hyp-
notic pattern, improvedphantasmalforce,
mirror image; thief abilities: PP 50%, OL
50%, FlRT 60%, MS 40%. HS 20%, HN
25%, CW 60%, RL 0%; AL CN; THACO
mor and carries a short sword + 1 and a
pair of throwing daggers. He is310years
old.
Hallan was enjoying a profitable career
as a freebooting thief-illusionist,until he
“helped carry that ungrateful old man’s
excessively heavy purse” in a port town.
Things became rather uneasy, and Hal-
Ian had to think about making a fast get-
away. Fortuitously, the Barracuda had
come into the harbor for reprovisioning.
Hallan somehow ’ managed-mainly
through lying-to persuade Tal to take
him on as a crewmember.
To everyone’s surprise, most of all Hal-
Ian’s. the gnome took to space like a
duck to water. He quickly learned how to
handle the ship, and showed a natural a p
titude for navigation and celestial me-
chanics. With total disregard for certain
jokes popular at the time (“Better a hole
in the hull than a gnome at the map ta-
ble,” etc.), Tal promoted Hallan to naviga-
tor. Although Hallan retains an
aggravatingly happy-go-lucky attitude
about everything else, he is deadly seri-
ous when it comes to his navigation.
It is Hallan who casts the phantasmal
force spell that conceals the third cata-
pult.
 Lara Mooncrow: AC 3; MV 12; W8; hp no armor; instead, his light green scaly Manta is on deck to cast spells.
18; #AT 1; Dmg byweapon(dagger(1-4), skin is decorated with elaborate tattoos Manta speaks to no one, not even Tal
darts (1-3)) or spell; Str 9, Dex 12, Con 8, and painted-on designs. He carries a bas- Gilgalad. She is impatient and touchy,
Int 16, Wis 10, Cha 13; spells: charmper- tard sword, and a throwing axe hangs on and responds violently to insult, in-
son, friends, sleep, taunt; scare, ray of en- his belt. tended or not.
feeblement, Tasha’s uncontrollable Vissq is Tal’s sergeant-at-armsand per-
hideous laughter; hold person, sugges- sonal bodyguard. He speaks Common The Crew ’
tion, wraithform; enchanted weapon, haltingly and with a harsh sibilant
Leomund’s secure shelter; AL L E THACO accent. Although he shares his race’s im- The Barracuda’s complement of 40 is
18. Lara is a female human of striking patience with warm-blooded creatures in rounded out by 34 crack crew members.
beauty. Her hair is waist-length and general, he feels grudging respect to- All are armed with broad swords plus a
golden blonde, and her eyes are a bright ward Tal Gilgalad (Vissq finds the elfs at- personal sidearm (usually a dagger or
and piercing blue. She wears no armor, titude toward taking life to be hand axe), and wear leather armor. Fif-
but depends upon a pair of bracers of de- refreshingly cold-blooded). Even if this teen also carry heavy crossbows; the bal-
fense, AC 3. She is armed with a dagger weren’t the case, he’d feel duty-boundto ance carry wheel lock pistols. Among the
+2 and 6 darts. She also wears a ring of follow Tal: the elf saved him from a neogi ship’s stores are 20 boarding pikes.
shooting stars. lifejammer. A typical crewmember will have the
Lara Mooncrow’s earlier career in- Vissq will sometimes assist Berwick in following statistics:
volved a number of unpleasant activities leading boarding parties. This doesn’t al- Crewmember: AC 9; MV 12; F1; hp 1-
in a number of different crystal spheres, ways work out too well, since Vissq is un- 10; #AT 1; Dmg by weapon (broad sword
including assassination. Her luck eventu- willing to take orders from anyone (2-8); heavy crossbow (2-5); or wheel lock
ally ran out; she was captured and put except Tal. During boarding actions, pistol (1-4)); AL N; THACO 20.
aboard a spelljamming vessel which was Vissq usually holds back and waits, join- The crew are all cross-trained. Thus,
to take her back to her home planet for ing the boarding party if the men begin any crewmember is equally competent
trial. As fate would have it, the ship was losing. working the rigging or operating the
attacked by the Barracuda, and Lara heavy weapons. Their level of training is
“Manta”: AC 10; MV 12; W12; hp 3 0 high, as is their morale (13). The respect
managed to make her escape during the #AT 1; Dmg by spell; Str 9, Dex 12, Con
battle, using spells to cover her trail as in which they hold their captain trans-
10, Int 17, Wis 11, Cha 8; spells: cantrip, lates to a high level of loyalty toward
she stowed away aboard the pirate ves- chill touch, magic missile, wall of fog;
sel. Only after the battle was over did she him. They are very unlikely to consider
darkness 15’radius, spectral hand, stink- bribes.
show herself and apply to Tal Gilgalad foring cloud, web; feign death, hold undead,
a job. He hired her immediately, and
lightning bolt, uampiric touch; contagion,
never once regretted the decision. eneruation, ice storm, Otiluke’s resilient Battle Tactics
As ship’s mage (the highest level wiz- sphere; animate dead, magicjar, summon Tal’s favorite tactic is to approach un-
ard other than the helmsman), she ad- shadow, wall of force; death spell; AL N; der false colors, flying the flag of a con-
vises the captain and helps during THACO 17. Manta is a middle-aged hu- venient and totally unagressive nation.
battles; her ring of shooting stars makes man female, unattractive and a bit over- In keeping with this disguise, the Barra-
her a creditable addition to the Barracu- weight. She always wears black, cuda’s major weapons are unloaded and
da’s firepower. She also takes a shift as loose-fitting clothes and keeps her head unmanned . . . except for the magically
helmsman, although her spelljamming covered with a cowl. She carries no concealed third catapult, which is loaded
ability is considerably less than that of weapons. and ready to fire. The only crew visible
Manta, the regular helmsman. In addi- Nobody knows Manta’s real name or on deck are those few required to maneu-
tion, she has developed great skill in her true background. Tal first met her on ver the vessel; the others are concealed
aiming the ship’s main weaponry, mak- the Rock of Bral, where she was serving below decks. These factors, coupled with
ing her a specialist in both heavy cata- Prince Andru. Tal recognized her talent the Barracuda’s relatively slow rate of ap-
pults and heavy ballistas. (as well as her ruth1essness)and hired her proach, usually lull the target ship into a
Lara Mooncrow’s manner is cold and away from Andru with promises of great false sense of security.
withdrawn, speaking only when spoken plunder. Manta feels no loyalty toward Tal Gilgalad will slowly approach the
to, and then in as few words as possible. Tal, or to anyone else, and Tal knows it. PCs’ ship, coming as close as they’ll let
She has an even more offhand attitude to He fears a confrontation will come, but him. Should the PCs hail him in any man-
taking life than does Tal Gilgalad. until then, she’s a useful addition to the ner, he’ll reply that he has some informa-
Vissq (lizard man): AC 5; MV 6; F10; crew. tion that he’s been ordered to pass on to
hp 74; #AT3 or I; Dmg 1-2/1-2/1-6(claw/ Manta is main helmsman for the Barra- any vessel he meets. “There’s a neogi
claw/tail)or byweapon(bastard sword(1- cuda, and spends most of her days at or deathspider somewhere in the system,
8/2-8),throwing axe (1-6)) + 1 Str bonus; near the major helm. If firepower is more preying on ships,” he lies. “I have a chart
Str 16, Dex 12,Con 16, Int 10,Wis8, Cha important than spelljamming speed in showing in which areas most of the at-
9; AL N(E); THACO 10. Vissq is a lizard an expected encounter, Tal Gilgalad will tacks have occurred.” He will continue
man, standing seven feet tall. He wears use Lara Mooncrow at the helm, while with this deception as long as he can.

When Tal has closed with the PCs’ ship
as much as he thinks he’s able, he pulls
down his ship’s false flag and replaces it
with a black flag, a scarlet neogi skull on
it-the pirates’ flag! Simultaneously, the
gnome illusionist drops the phantasmal
force concealing the third heavy cata-
pult, and the weapon crew fires a shot at
the PCs’ vessel. This shot is aimed at the
hull, but is intended to intimidate more
than injure. If the PCs’ ship is particularly
big, Tal will order Lara Mooncrow to fire
her ring ofshooting stars at the vessel. As
his crew swarms on deck and begins
loading all the heavy weaponry, Tal
Gilgalad hails the PCs’ ship and demands
their surrender.
Should the PCs refuse to strike their
colors and surrender,Tal Gilgalad pushes
home the attack in the most efficient
method. First, he’ll order a shearing at-
tack, followed by an attempt to grapple
and board. If the PCs’ vessel is well-
manned, he’ll use his catapults and
Lara’s magic to “sweep the decks” before
boarding. He’ll ram only as a last resort.
He will continue to fight until it’s obvious
that the fight’s going against him-in
which case he’ll try to escape, using his
stern catapult and perhaps Lara’s ring (if
she hasn’t already used all of its powers)
to keep the PCs off his tail, or until the
PCs have been defeated.
Note: Tal Gilgalad still has much lin-
gering hatred toward orcs. Should the
captain of the target ship be an orc or a
half-orc (unlikely but possible), Tal will
not ask for surrender at all, but will sim-
ply press the attack to its conclusion.
Despite his indifference to causing
death, he will rescue survivors should the
PCs’ ship be destroyed. Odds are he’ll
sell them to the first prospective buyer
he can find; Sisk Hal of the Collector
might be interested in some new slaves
for his “Brain Trade” in Chapter 3 . . .
Tal Gilgalad is an intelligent captain.
As such, he knows when targets are just
to big for him to handle (a tyrant ship, for
example). Tal Gilgalad will not attack a
ship of more than 50 tons unless it looks
seriously undermanned or exhibits evi-
dence of inexperience (clumsy maneu-
vers, etc.).
Terms of Surrender
for PCs
Should the PCs surrender, Tal will de-
mand that they hand over all cargo plus
valuable personal possessions. He will
send a prize crew aboard to make sure
that his orders are carried out (the size of
this crew depends on how powerful the
PCs look Tal isn’t dumb). After he has his
hands on the plunder, he’ll order his prize
crew to destroy the ship’s rigging (de-
creasing its maneuverability). He will
then sail off without any immediate
worry of pursuit.
for the Barracuda
If t k fight should turn against the Bar-
racudahd it can’t make its getaway, Tal
Gilgalad will not surrender: rather, he’ll
fight to the death. The same is not neces-
sarily true of the others on board, of
course.
As Tal’s bodyguard, Vissq will give his
life to save his master’s. . . but only if Tal
isn’t fighting a “no-win” situation. If Tal
has a chance to save his life by surrender-
ing, but chooses to fight, then Vissq con-
siders that to be suicide, which
terminates any obligation he has’ to the
elf. On his own, Vissq will fight until an
opportunity arises to honorably save his
own life. (Surrendering to an overwhelm-
ing force isn’t cowardice: it’s simply
good sense. To be honorable, however,
surrender must come only in responseto
a request from a powerful enemy. Thus, if
Vissq is surrounded and a PC asks him to
surrender, he can do so honorably.) If no
honorable opportunity for surrender
presents itself, Vissq will fight to the
death.
Berwick and Lara Mooncrow are a lit-
tle less particular about honor. Both will
throw down their weapons if the only al-
ternative is their deaths. Berwick will
abide by his surrender, hoping to per-
suade the victors to take him aboard
(that’s how he joined the Barracuda, after
all; it’s simply the mercenary’s code).
Lara Mooncrow, on the other hand, will
take any opportunity to slay her captors
and escape.
Hallan Deepdelf will fight gamely un-
less he thinks his beloved star charts
might be damaged. In such a case, he’ll
immediately do whatever it takes to pro-
!
tect them, including surrender. He has
grown to enjoy this life as navigator, and
I
may offer his services to the PCs.
If Manta is fighting from the deck, she
asks no quarter and gives none. If she is
in the helm, however, she will take no
other part in the fray. 6he will surrender if
the Barracuda is defeated and she has
not been insulted by the PCs. She will do
nothing to the PCs as long as they are at
least marginally polite to her: should
they insult her, however, she will remem-
ber the slight at a more opportune
time.. .
The crew’s behavior can be deter-
mined using standard morale rules.
Concluding the Adventure
The Barracuda itself is a good prize,
should the PCs manage to capture it. Its
holds contain one hundred bolts of fine
silk stolen from Tal’s last victim: each
bolt is worth 500 gold pieces. In addition,
there are other small valuables stashed ,
in Tal’s cabin: a ruby ring (750 gp value),
a platinum circlet (1,000 gp), a pair of
gold-chased bracers (non-magical: 300
gp), and a diamond pendant (1,100 gp).
Each crewmember also has personal
possessionsworth 10-60 gp (100-600 gp
for officers).
Knowing the risks of space combat, Tal
and his crew have taken precautions to
protect their booty. Even if their ship is
destroyed and they are captured, they
can eventually make their way back to
where their treasure is stashed and re-
claim it. The Barracuda’s wealth is
cached on a number of planets, in a num-
ber of legal and illegal places. (One of the
crew has bought an interesting tavern
with his share of the plunder.)
If the Barracuda should win and make
off with the PCs’ valuables, that’s not
necessarily the end of the story. The PCs
can try to follow the pirates immediately,
or try to track them down later for re-
venge. On the other hand, if the PCs were
particularly wealthy, the pirates might
decide to follow the PCs’ escapades,
making another visit when the pickings
are good again. As such, Tal Gilgalad can
prove to be a convenient nemesis for the
PCs in an ongoing campaign.
Small Package Trade ,,
Setting: The Flow
Party: 4-6 characters, levels 6-8
Ship: Tradesman, Wasp, or equal
Setups
The PCs are ashore, casting around
for ways to make money, or looking for
information necessary for their pirate-
hunting careers. They receive a message
from the bartender or other intermediary
that “the Torgan Betz” wants to have a
word with them. He is awaiting them in
another tavern nearby, “The Drunken
Neogi.”
(Note: This adventure is intended for a
group of PCs commanding their own
small ship.)
Of all the joints in all the port towns
of all the worlds you’ve visited, “The
Drunken Neogi” would probably rate
as the seediest. And that’s certainly
saying something.
The air is thick with smoke-an in-
teresting mixture of tobacco and
more exotic weeds, with a definite un-
derpinning of burning rubber-and
figures on the other side of the narrow
barroom are little more than blurred
shapes. A couple of lizard men, armed
to the teeth, are standing at the bar,
carrying on a hissing conversation
over a bowl of bar snacks (some kind
of weevils, you think). Over in the cor-
ner, three disreputable-looking il-
lithids are puffing on a water pipe,
adding a new and heady note to the
I=”/
bouquet of the air. Across the room, a
\ drunk and belligerent human is trying
to challenge a bemused dracon to a
bout of arm wrestling. And right next
to you, a half-orc snarls a wildly im-
probable speculation about your heri-
tage before planting its forehead
firmly against the top of the table and
starting to snore loudly.
In the entire bar, there’s only one
figure who is dressed at all well (apart
from you, of course). He is sitting at a
table in a back corner of the tavern, as
far away from the general ruckus as
he can. Tall and slender, with black
hair and a well-trimmed black beard,
he looks confident and competent. . .
and dangerous. Torgan Betz, you as-
sume. Standing behind him at formal
parade rest is a giff, dressed to kill in
an elaborate uniform that looks too
over-done to belong in a comic opera.
Both of these worthies fix you with
steady dark eyes. Betz beckons you.
Torgan Betz: AC 2; MV 12; F9iT7; hp
D; #AT 312; Dmg by weapon (short
sword (1-6), dagger (1-4), garrotte); Str
13,Dex 16, Con 13, Int 14, Wis 12,Cha
15; thief skills: PP 45%. OL 40%. FIRT
35%, MS 40%, HS 35%, DN 45%, CW
90%, RL 30%; AL N(E); THACO 12. Betz
wears bracers of defenseAC2 and carries
a short sword +2. Carefully concealed
on his person, he carries a dagger of
uenom and a garrotte. Betz will kill with-
out compunction. He is brave, but not
stupid: surrender (with the future chance
of escape and exquisitely-planned re-
venge) is vastly preferable to death.
The Contract
“You are looking for a contract?”
Betz asks matter-of-factly.“Everyone
is. Well, I have something for you. A
small package that I wish delivered to
another system. No complications, no
danger. Just a desire to make sure the
package is delivered as soon as possi-
ble, with no outside involvement.
Fixed price, retainer to be paid up
front, balance on delivery. Total con-
tract is worth five thousand gold, your
choice of currency. Retainer is fifteen
hundred, cash, right now. Two condi-
tions. One: the package is to remain
unopened. On penalty of forfeit: re-
maining payment, your ship, your
lives. Two: my associate here”-and
he indicates the giff-“goes along
with you. Now. . .do we have a deal?”
If the PCs accept the deal (or can hag
gle their way into a higher payment-a
difficult task), Betz will arrange to meet’
them at a neutral spot early the next
morning. He will have with him the pack-
age, the charts to their destination, their
retainer, and the giff.
The Deal
This may sound like a straightforward
contract, but things are never what they
seem when Torgan Betz gets into the act.
Betz is famous (or notorious) as a “gray
trader”: not quite a smuggler or pirate,
but one who bends the laws without
breaking them. There are often specula-
tions that his business dealings include
activities that are out and out criminal,
but no one has ever been able to bring
forth any evidence. (Trying to do so
seems to be an activity fraught with ill
luck. Several investigators in the past
have perished in freak accidents, includ-
ing the fellow who tripped and fell back-
wards onto his own dagger, twice.)
On the surface, however, this particu-
lar deal looks as though Betz is playing
matters straight. Betz is acting as mid-
dleman between two staggeringly rich
(and somewhat senile) art collectors.
One is selling a particular item to the
other for the princely sum of 20,000 gp.
Betz’s job, for which he will receive a
commission, is to make sure that the
item gets to its destination. He is respon-
sible for hiring transportation and pro-
tection. To make sure that nothing unto-
ward happens, Betz has even offered to
send his giff lieutenant along on the trip.
It certainly looks a s though Betz is on the
up and up.
That’s just on the surface, however.
Betz definitely has other plans. One of
his ships-a Wasp-class vessel-is wait-
ing to ambush the delivery. With the aid
of the giff on board, the crew of the deliv-
ery vessel will theoretically stand little
chance. The hulk and bodies-along
with that of a dead giff (not t h e
lieutenant)-will be left t o drift t h e
spaceways. Betz’s giff lieutenant will hie
off with the Wasp and keep out of sight
until the heat is off.
Betz will have the item, which he can
then ransom back-through intermedi-
aries, of course-to whichever of the col-
lectors will pay the best price. Betz can
calmly proclaim his innocence, and
point to his actions a s proof. Didn’t he
hire a crew of doughty adventurers to
protect the prize? And didn’t he send
along his loyal lieutenant-killed in
action, trying to discharge his duty-to
to act a s special guard? N o one can prove
Betz guilty of any wrong-doing.
It’s a good plan. The PCs are the per-
fect patsies, and all they have to do is
obediently die at the proper time.
Getting Underway
Betz meets the PCs at the specified
time and place. A s promised, he has the
item-a sealed metal box about 6” on a
side-their payment, charts to their des-
tination . . . and the giff. For the first
time, Betz formally introduces the PCs’
travelling companion:
Betz gestures with his thumb. “And
this is my right-hand man. Meet Sec-
ond Assistant Sub-Colonel
Dourm . . .”
“Brevetted,” the giff puts in.
Betz nods. “Second Assistant Sub-
Colonel (brevetted) Dourm Larbo.”
The giff snaps you a picture-perfect
salute. “Thank you, sah.“
“So much for protocol,” Betz says.
“Don’t you think you’d better be off?”
The Giff
Dourm Larbo (giff): AC 6 (2);MV 6; HD
4; hp 25; #AT 2; Dmg 1-6/1-6or by
weapon +7 Str bonus; SA head butt; AL
LE; THACO 17. Larbo normally wears a
ludicrously elaborate uniform; a s soon
as he’s aboard ship, however, he puts on
a suit of armor that lowers his AC to 2. H e
owns a wheel lock pistol with enough
smoke powder for 10 shots, and never
lets this prized weapon out of his sight.
In most ways, Second Assistant Sub-
Colonel (brevetted) Dourm Larbo seems
to be a typical giff: he’s somewhat supe-
rior around the “little races,” and a stick-
ler for military correctness. In fact,
however, Larbo is that most dangerous
(and rare) of creatures: a cunning giff. He
plays the part of the buffoon to the hilt,
but is really much more intelligent than
he lets on. H e knows all the details of
Betz’s plan-in fact, it was Larbo who
added some of the refinements-and will
do his utmost to allay any suspicions that
the PCs may have. (He’ll also act the
heavy to persuade the PCs not to take off
with the loot.)

Ambush!
The PCs’ destination is in a nearby
crystal shell. The time it takes to get out
of the current shell depends on the sys-
tem, but once their vessel is into the
Flow, the remainder of the voyage takes
only 10 days.
Betz has provided good charts, show-
ing clearly a “river” in the Flow that will
speed the PCs’ journey. He’s made sure
that the PCs know about this river: that’s
where the ambush ship is waiting.
(Torgan Betz dispatched it the night be-
fore the PCs’ departure, as soon as he
knew what kind of ship they’d be taking.)
When the PCs’ vessel enters the phlogis-
ton and begins to maneuver toward the
river, Betz’s Wasp ship will attack.
As soon as the attack is underway,
Larbo will do his part to make sure that it
succeeds. His first order of business is to
immobilize the PCs’ ship by killing the
helmsman. After that, he’ll concentrate
his attentions on who he considers to be
the most powerful-and hence the most
dangerous-PC. It’s a giff‘s nature to fol-
low orders, even unto death, so Larbo
will fight to the end. He will only consider
surrender if the ambushing Wasp is de-
stroyed or driven off and he doesn’t think
he can finish off the survivors aboard the
PCs’ vessel.
Wasp
The Wasp is “topped out” with addi-
tional rigging which improves its Maneu-
verability Class to C, and has a thickened
hull, decreasing its Armor Rating to 5. It
is armed with a greek fire projector (crew
3) in addition to its heavy ballista. The
ship has an SR of 5. When it attacks, it
will do so from an angle that minimizes
the PCs’ chance of outrunning it.
The Wasp is captained by one of Betz’s
most trusted lieutenants, a half-elf
named Dorin Twostar, and helmed by a
human mage named Ord Nellis. Twostar
is assisted by his first officer, Harnakh, a
flind. Its total crew is 18. The crew’s mo-
rale (with one notable exception, men-
tioned below) is 14.
Dorin Twostar: AC 4; MV 9; F9; hp 46;
#AT 2; Dmg by weapon (long sword (1-8),
wheel lock pistol (1-4)); Str 15, Dex 12,
Con 14, Int 13, Wis 11, Cha 1 4 AL L N
THACO 12. He wears splint mail, and is
armed with a wheel lock pistol (ammuni-
tion and powder for six shots), a long
sword + 1 and a dagger. As one of Betz’s
lieutenants,Twostar knows the details of
the plan.
Ord Nellis: AC 10; MV 12;W10; hp 25;
#AT 1; Dmg by weapon (staff of striking,
dagger (1-4)); Str 10,Dex 12,Con 10,Int
15, Wis 12, Cha 12; spells: none; AL N;
THACO 17. Nellis wears no armor, and
carries a staff of striking (45 charges),
plus a pair of daggers. She is only a
“hired hand” on this operation, paid to
operate the Wasp’s spelljamming helm.
As such, her morale is considerably
lower than the other members of the
crew (10). If things look bad, she’ll defin-
itely try to make her escape or surrender
to the PCs. She knows none of the details
of the plan, and is unaware of Betz’s in-
volvement; it was Twostar who hired her.
Harnakh (flind leader): AC 5; MV 12;
HD 2+3; hp 25; #AT 2; Dmg 1-6 or 1-4;
SA disarm; AL LE; THACO 17. Harnakh
is armed with a flindbar (Dmg 1-4). He is
quite fastidious for a creature related to
gnolls. He is simply following the orders
of his commanding officer, and knows
nothing about Betz’s plan.
Senior Crewmember (x6): AC 7; MV
12; F3; hp 11, 16,17. 19, 19.22; #AT 1;
Dmg by weapon (heavy crossbow (2-5),
long sword (1-8), dagger (1-4)); AL N;
THACO 18. Senior crewmembers wear
ring mail armor, and carry heavy cross-
bows plus long swords and daggers.
Crewmember (x9): AC 7; MV 12; F2;
hp 4,6,6,7,9,9,10,1 I, 11;#AT I; Dmg
by weapon (long sword (1-8), dagger (1-
4)); AL N; THACO 19. Crewmembers
wear studded leather armor, and carry
long swords and daggers. In addition,
each has access to a grappling hook.
Tactics
Twostar’s tactics are simple. By the
time his ship is in range, Larbo should
have immobilized the PCs’ vessel. Two-
star will then order his ballista and greek
fire projector to quell any resistance
aboard the target vessel, before board-
ing. Once he has his hands on the sealed
box containing the item, he’ll kill anyone
left aboard the PCs’ vessel, plant the
dead body of a giff (dressed in a uniform
similar to Larbo’s, of course) that he’s
brought along in his ship’s hold and
leave the gutted ship to drift. (A day or so
later, another ship owned by Betz will
“happen along” and discover the “trag-
edy.”)
Since this is supposed to be a short
“hit and run” mission, there’s little of
value or interest aboard the Wasp. Two-
star has a locked desk in his cabin, how-
ever, that contains’a portion of his pay-
ment for the raid (10 pp) and a letter that
reads as follows:
They will be coming in a /type of
PCs’ ship], one day after you. You
know the plan: dead men tell no tales.
Our large friend will help to the best of
his considerableabilities.
78
The Item
Curious PCs will probably want to
know what all the fuss is about. The box
containing the artwork is sealed in thin
metal (a precaution against substitution;
there’s no way to open the box without
leaving evidence of the activity). Anyone
with Strength greater than 12 will have‘
no difficulty breaking away the seal with
a dagger. (If the PCs try this before the
ambush, Larbo will definitely do his ut-
most to stop them.)
Inside the box, resting on a bed of
black velvet, is the item. It’s a clumsily-
crafted cameo, depicting a profile that
could just as well be a pig as a human. It
has value only to the most ardent of col-
lectors. (It’s an early work by someone
who later developed into a great artist. Its
only significance is as a historical piece.)
The PCs might, if they’re very lucky, find
another collector who might pay them
up to 5,000 gp for the item. Alternatively,
they might try to ransom the item back
to one of the collectors involved in the
original deal. In this case, they might be
able to negotiate the price as high as
10,000 gp.
Concluding the Adventure
Depending on the alignments and atti-
tudes of the PCs, they might either keep
the item for themselves (and try to ran-
som it back, perhaps), or see their mis-
sion through and deliver it to its rightful
owner.
Torgan Betz represents a bit of unfin-
ished business. There is enough indirect
evidence to implicate him in the goings-
on. . . not enough for legal proceedings,
but probably more than enough to tempt
the PCs toward thoughts of revenge. If
they come gunning for Betz, however, he
has dropped out of sight. Betz is an ideal
“nemesis” for the PCs, a “Napoleon of
crime” around which many future adven-
tures can be developed. (The final adven-
ture in the book, “Cain,” again pits the
PCs against Betz.)
Pirate-Wyrm
Setting: Wildspace
Party: 4-6 characters, levels 7-9
Ship: Any (30 tons+ recommended)
Setups
The PCs have heard tales that a
number of ships have gone missing in a
certain area of space. They decide, or are
asked, to investigate. The area in ques-
tion is within an asteroid belt.
The PCs are travelling through an
asteroid belt (Le., the DM can drop this
adventure in at any time).
There’s something disconcerting
about having a chunk of rock as big as
a good-sized castle hanging over you.
Sure, intellectually you realize it isn’t
going to fall on you-the thing’s in or-
bit, like all the other asteroids around
you-but tell that to your stomach. . .
Your helmsman and navigator don’t
seem to be enjoying it too much ei-
ther. There’s just too much clutter in
space around here for their liking: too
many things to run into. And it’s obvi-
ous that you’re limited to tactical
speed. Even if the helm let you reach
full spelljamming speed, slamming
into a city-sized chunk of rock at four
million miles per hour isn’t a particu-
larly attractive concept.
“Captain!” someone yells. “Over
there!”
You look where the crewmember is
pointing. There’s something large com-
ing out from behind one of the aste-
roids. Or maybe uncoiling from around
it. Something that glitters and shim-
mers in the starlight as though made of
diamonds. Huge, membranous wings
extend, and a mouth big enough to
swallow ships stretches into what looks
uncomfortably like a smile.
“Dragon!” you hear a voice yell,
and belatedly realize it’s yours. “Bat-
tle stations!“
The dragon is 15 hexes from the ship.
The space around the ship is dotted with
1-20asteroids. The DM can locate these
randomly, or place them specifically to
make the tactical situation interesting.
(For example, the asteroids can be set in
static orbits which create a slalom course
for both ship and dragon. In this case,
maneuverability becomes paramount.)
Starlight Brilliant Glowing
Radiance
The creature approaching the ship is a
radiant dragon whose short name trans-
lates into Common as “Starlight Brilliant
Glowing Radiance.” The creature’s long
name is even more overblown, and
would take several minutes to recite. She
is a rapacious creature who has recently
chosen space piracy as the best way to
satisfy her greed. Her intention is to
“hold up” the PCs’ vessel. If they surren-
der and hand over all of their wealth(plus
grovel a bit), she will let them escape
with ship and skins intact; otherwise, she
will destroy their vessel and pick what
she wants out of the wreckage.
The dragon is supposed to be a foe
that the PCs can just defeat, but only af-
ter a tough fight and only if they show
some tactical intelligence. The statistics
given below should be used as a starting
point; the DM can increase or decrease
them to match the particular party.
Starlight Brilliant Glowing Radiance
(radiant dragon): AC -2; MV 12, FI 48
(B); HD 15;hp 113; #AT3 + special; Dmg
2-2012-2014-40(+7); SA breath weapon
(14d12+7 damage), spell use; SD 45%
magic resistance; AL CE; THACO 5. She
currently possesses the following spells:
light, faerie fire, command, cause fear,
cause light wounds, sanctuay; charm
person, enthrall, hold person, heat metal;
continual light, starshine, glyph of ward-
ing, pyrotechnics; protection from light-
ning, spell immunity, produce fire, detect
lie; moonbeam, rainbow; fire seeds, blade
bam‘er; sunray, fire storm. In addition,
she has the following innate abilities: re-
store or corrupt air, Bigby’s interposing
hand, Bigby’s grasping hand, and shape-
change. Details are given in the Lorebook
ofthe Void, page 73. The dragon’s body is
225 feet long, with a tail 250 feet long.
Starlight is highly intelligent as well as
highly evil, and she has an ego bigger
than she is. As well as taking everything
they have, she wants something more
from the PCs: their grovelling pleas to let
them live. Throughout the encounter,
she will taunt the PCs and play with
them, enjoying their fear. (All in all, she’s
a highly unpleasant creature.)
If the PCs seriously Challenge Starlight
(that is, if they manage to inflict 65 or
more points of damage and look capable
of inflicting more), she will try to escape
to her asteroid lair. There she will recu-
perate and plot out exquisitely vicious
plans for revenge against the PCs (Star-
light knows this asteroid field, and has
been known to tail slap debris at ships to
prevent pursuit-count as a giant’s boul-
der throwing ability). If escape is some-
how denied her, she will fight until
reduced to 30 hit points, then will surren-
der and try to buy her life with the loca-
tion of her lair and treasure hoard.
Dragon’s Lair
Starlight’s lair is a hollowed-out aster-
oid some distance from the site of the ’
battle. The PCs can find it only by follow-
ing the fleeing dragon, by extracting the
information from Starlight, or by means
of scrying. It is roughly spherical, and
about 400’ in diameter.
The lair’s construction is simple and
spartan. There’s a cave-like entrance 50
feet in diameter (just big enough for the
dragon to enter with her wings folded),
which opens into a central cavern. Star-
light has hollowed out the entire asteroid
to form a single chamber roughly 300’ in
diameter. (This leaves walls 50’ thick.)
This cavern is in total darkness; it has a
fresh atmosphere.
Starlight has left a few magical sur-
prises for anyone who tries to enter her
lair. She has cast a glyph of warding on
the opening; the first non-dracoform
creature that tries to enter triggers the
glyph and is the victim of a cause critical
wounds spell. She has also warded the
entry with two wyuern watch spells (she
set these when she left her lair, 1 hour be-
fore her encounter with the PCs). In addi-
tion, a permanent magic mouth has been
cast on the entrance. Any non-dracoform
creature trying to enter triggers the
dweomer, which yells loudly, in the red
dragon tongue, “Intruders! Wake up, eve-
rybody!” (This is Starlight’s idea of psy-
chological warfare. There are no red
dragons within, although she’d be quite
glad if any intruders were scared off by
the thought that there were.)
Central Chamber
The chamber is roughly circular. It has
gravity on all surfaces, allowing the PCs
to use any surface as a floor.
The chamber is home to Starlight’s
pets, two space drakes (AC 2; MV 12; HD
10, hp 34,50; THACO 11; #AT 2; Dmg 2-
16/1-12 (biteltail); S A breath, magic,
constriction; SD 30% magic resistance;
AL N(E)). They are trained to attack in-
truders on sight.
This chamber is where Starlight keeps
her rather considerable treasure hoard.
This is scattered around the chamber, se-
cured to the walls by gravity. The radiant
dragon’s hoard consists of four leather
sacks containing 25,000 sp each (in-
tended for a dwarven forge, where they
would have been melted down); three
large chests containing 5,000 gp each
(literally a king’s ransom); an earthen-
ware jar containing 750 pp (“requisi-
tioned” from a passing nautiloid); a small
locked chest containing 25 gems (base
value 100 gp); and another locked chest
containing a matched set of 12 gem-
studded gold drinking goblets, each
worth 750 gp.
Aside from all the other treasures, the
PCs find the following: a scroll case con-
taining three scrolls (death fog; wizard
eye, auoidance, fabricate; phantasmal
killer, uacancy); and a small chest con-
taining a girdle of hillgiant strength and a
hat ofstupidity. Starlight knows that the
magical items are of great value even
though she can’t use them. She’s cast a
glyph of warding on the scroll case and
the small chest. Triggering the glyph
causes blindness. (A successful saving
throw means the victim fights at -2 to
hit for the next 2-8 rounds due to blurry
vision.)
Concluding the Adventure
If Starlight Brilliant Glowing Radiance
is defeated but escapes, future adven-
tures can develop around her attempts
for revenge against the PCs. Likewise, if
the PCs are defeated but survive, or if
they surrender, they can may later go
hunting for the dragon.
Finding the dragon’s lair and beating
the guardians within isn’t the end of the
story, should the PCs defeat the dragon.
They must also live to spend their new-
found wealth. The dragon might have captain seems to have but on thing on
family or acquaintances in the region. his mind . . . as usual.
“Battle stations!” you yell. “Again
Advantageous and patient pirates
might also be staking out the area. . . . ” you sigh.
Knowing that where there’s a dragon,
there’s a hoard, they could be waiting to The approaching ship is a Viking
ambush anyone who has their hands on “Drakkar” or dragon ship (not to be con-
it. Their rationale is: anyone who’s been fused with the Shou version from the
in a fight-even a winning one-with a SPELWAMMER’” boxed set). This vessel
radiant dragon won’t be in the best of has the following characteristics:
shape to resist “sharing” all their prizes
with the pirates. Drakkar
“Bloody Vikings. .. 99
Built By: Groundling humans
(Vikings)
Used Primarily By: Groundling humans
Setting: Wildspace
Party: 4-6 characters, levels 6-8 (Vikings)
Ship: Any Tonnage: 15 tons
Hull Points: 15
Crew: 8/15
Setups Maneuverability
The PCs have heard that shipping in Class: E
a certain region has been suffering the Landing-Land No
ravages of pirates. Rumors claim that the Landing-Water: Yes
culprit is “Erik somebody,” one of the pi- Armor Rating: 9
rates on the PCs’ bounty list. Saves As: Thick wood
The PCs are travelling in wildspace Power Type: Major or minor
(Le., the DM can drop this adventure in at helm
any time). Ship’s Rating: As for helmsman
Standard
You’re starting to think that this ad- Armament: 1 medium ballista,
venturing in space isn’t all it’s cracked crew 2
up to be. Whatever happened to meet- Cargo: 7 tons
ing interesting new people for infor- Keel Length: 100‘
mative and stimulating conversation? Beam Length: 15’
It seems that everyone you’ve met This particular vessel is equipped with
lately, every ship you’ve encountered, a major helm and has SR 5. It is 8 hexes
has wanted to attack you. No “Pleased away from the PCs’ vessel, bearing loo
to meet you, where are you from?” to port.
Just “Fire the catapults and board
them!”
There’s another ship up ahead, and
Erik Bloodaxe
it certainly looks like it’s on an inter- The world that Erik Bloodaxe came
ception course. Even at this distance, from was supposed to be non-magical.
you can see the sail going up and the Oh, certainly there were gods; Bloodaxe
ship beginning to accelerate. Just believed (at least partially) in one named
wonderful. . . Odin, and sacrificed to him when he re-
There’s something about this vessel membered. But the gods seemed far re-
that looksa little different, though. It’s moved from the day-to-day affairs of
not one of the standard configura- men. The skalds told epic tales of days
tions you’re used to seeing in wild- gone by, when gods still walked the earth
space. This one . . . it seems to be an and nothing was what it seemed. But
open ship, long, and narrow across those days had long since passed. At
the beam. And it’s got oars . . . a least, so thought Erik Bloodaxe.
groundling vessel, for certain. Imagine his consternation when he
Groundling vessel or not, it’s still found a strangely dressed weakling of a
man staggering aimlessly near the
wreckage of some kind of ship. Not that
shipwrecks were unusual; the fjords
claimed their fair share of unwary vessels
each year, particularly when the storms
came. But this shipwreck was twenty
miles inland! The ruined vessel might
well have fallen from the sky. . .
And that’s exactly what the stranger
said had happened, once they got over
the problem of common language. In the
stranger’s world, ships flew through the
sky, driven by people such as himself.
The stranger then claimed he was a wiz-
ard who flew among the stars!
Bloodaxe of course wanted to see
some proof of this. But the feebly-built
stranger could show him nothing, even
when Bloodaxe threatened him with his
battle axe. He could only babble some-
thing about “spelljammer after-effects,”
and ask if he could spend some time
studying his “spellbook.”
Though not terribly civilized, Bloodaxe
was by no means unintelligent. Erik
quickly realized that-if the stranger was
telling the truth-this wizard could be in-
credibly useful, or incredibly dangerous if
he managed to spend any time with this
spellbook of his. With almost negligent
ease, Bloodaxe took the spellbook away
from the wizard, and destroyed it then and
there on a fire, while the stranger looked
on helplessly and wept.
Bloodaxe took the stranger back
home, and slowly extracted the full story.
Apparently the stranger had been visit.
ing Bloodaxe’s world-one apparently
well away from the established space-
ways (whatever those were)-and had
crashed his ship when it was caught in a
storm. Luckily, the “spelljamming helm”
was undamaged. Without that, and with-
out another strange item he called a
“portal locator,” the stranger could never
return to his world.
A t first, Bloodaxe kept this strange
story to himself, and kept the puny wiz-
ard out of sight. But then one day, when
the Council was meeting to decide the
target of the next raid, Bloodaxe stood
up and proposed that he command the
Drakkar, and that he should take it be-
yond the sky!
The Council’s laughter banishing him
from the hall, Bloodaxe swore to prove
himself a warrior not to be scoffed at. Af-
ter the wizard showed him how t o mount
the “helm” in Erik’s Drakkar, Erik picked
his crew from the younger, more adven-
turous warriors, and set off to gain fame
and fortune beyond the sky. That would
show the Council not to laugh at Erik
Bloodaxe!
Of course, only the wizard could operate
the helm, and Bloodaxe trusted him about
as far as he could spit a rat. Never was the
wizard out of easy reach, for the great Erik
Bloodaxe could not become stranded in
space, far from his clan who should sing
songs of his glory when he and the Raven
returned from beyond the sun!
All of this took place several months
ago. Erik Bloodaxe and his crew found
the pickings in space to be quite easy.
Certainly, the other ships they met were
more suited to the strange environment,
but what his small command lacked in
equipment and experience, they more
than made up for in ferocity. Through
sheer audacity, Bloodaxe won several en-
gagements that he had no chance of
even surviving. (One of those defeated
ships “donated” the medium ballista he’s
mounted in the bow.) Bloodaxe and his
crew will attack any vessel unlucky
enough to cross their path. Now it’s the
PCs’ turn. . .
The Attack
Bloodaxe has learned much from past
encounters, and his shipto-ship tactics
are quite good. He will start off with a few
shots from the medium ballista while his
vessel is still closing. His crew has pre-
pared the ballista ammunition by wrap-
ping the heads of the bolts in oil-soaked
burlap, which are then ignited before fir-
ing. As long as the ships are more than
one hex apart, the flames g o out before
the missile hits (Bloodaxe still hasn’t f i g
ured out the atmosphere envelopes).
Once they are in the same hex, however,
and their envelopes are contiguous, the
bolt will stay alight. Bloodaxe usually
gets one final shot in at this range.
Bloodaxe then makes a shearing at-
tack against the target vessel. He’s found
that his ship isn’t as maneuverable as
many of his targets, and his intention is
t o narrow that gap by destroying the tar-
get’s rigging. Then he attempts to grap
ple and board. (During the boarding
action, the wizard is taken along, since
it’s too dangerous to leave him behind.)
Bloodaxe takes no prisoners; all ene-
mies are killed, whether they surrender
or not (“enemies who surrender are not
worthy of life, anyway”). Once the enemy
ship has been stripped of everything that
Bloodaxe recognizes as valuable (which
doesn’t include most magic items other
than weapons or armor), his men torch
the enemy ship and set it adrift.
The Vikings
Erik Bloodaxe: AC 7: MV 12; F9; hp
70; #AT 2; Dmg by weapon (long sword
(1.8).handaxe(1-6));Str 15,Dex 13,Con
14, Int 11, Wis 9, Cha 14; AL CN(E);
THACO 10 (includes +2 bonus for feroc-
ity). Bloodaxe wears leather armor and
shield; he wields a long sword + I (he
doesn’t recognize that it’s magical, just
that it’s “balanced nice”), and has a hand serving dishes (500 gp each); and a mith-
axe on his belt.
Sven Onethumb: AC 7;MV 12; C2IF4
hp 18;#ATl;Dmgbyweapon(staff(l-6), also the ship’s portal locator (Lareth Eln
hammer (2-5)) or spell; Str 15, Dex 12,
Con 13, Int 11, Wis 12, Cha 13; spells:
shillelagh (x2);AL CN(E); THACO 15 (in-
cludes + 2 bonus for ferocity). Sven
wears leather armor and shield; he car-
ries a staff and a hammer. Around his
neck is the holy symbol of the Norse god
Modi (a sword and hammer, crossed).
Crewmember (x12): AC 7; MV 12; F3;
hp4,7,10,10,11, 13,13,13, 15,17,17,
19; #AT 1; Dmgbyweapon(battleaxe(1-
8). warhammer (2-5), long sword (1.8).
dagger (1-4)); AL CN(E); THACO 16 (in-
cludes +2 bonus for ferocity). They wear
leather armor and shields. Five wield
axes, four carry hammers, and three use
long swords. All have daggers as second-
ary weapons.
Bloodaxe, his cleric, and his crew are
true berserkers. Before a battle, they
work themselves into a rage. In this con-
dition, they will attack anything that
moves (except each other-they’re not
that crazy) and will fight until dead,
never checking morale.
Lareth Eln: AC 10;MV 12;WIO; hp 12;
#AT 1; Dmg by weapon or spell; Str 8,
Dex 10, Con 9, Int 15, Wis 11, Cha 11;
spells: none: AL N; THACO 17. Lareth
Eln is the wizard unlucky enough to
crash his craft near Bloodaxe’s home. He
is unarmored and unarmed, and has no
spell book. He will do whatever it takes to
keep himself alive.
At the DM’s option, Lareth may wrest
himself from Bloodaxe and defect to the
PCs. Lareth may beg for his life in ex-
change for information about Bloodaxe’s
ship and cargo. A journey to return
Lareth to the Forgotten Realms or a hunt
for spellbooks could open countless ad-
venturing opportunities.
The Raven
The loot that Bloodaxe has wrested
from his victims is piled haphazardly in
the hull. (Eventually Bloodaxe intends to
take it home, but for now he’s having too
much fun.) The Vikings’ hoard comprises
12,000 sp and 7,000 gp (loose, and rat-
tling around in the bilge); a velvet bag
hanging from a nail on the mainmast
containing 5 diamonds (1,000 gp base
value ea.); a matched set of four gold
ril chime ofinterruption (Bloodaxe has no
idea what it is, but it looks nice). There is
will claim that this is his and that the PCs
shouldn’t take it).
Concluding the Adventure
Until they are all killed, thevikings will
continue to terrorize the spaceways.
Even if the wizard Lareth Eln is killed or
escapes, Sven Onethumb the cleric can
serve as spelljammer (although the
ship’s SR drops to I, making the Raven
considerably less threatening). Future
adventures can develop around hunting
down these bloodthirsty Vikings, should
they survive.
If the PCs rescue Lareth Eln, he’ll obvi-
ously be very grateful. He may want to go
home, back to Sembia in the Forgotten
Realms, where he’ll give up the space-
faring life and maybe raise chickens or
something safe. The only way he can get
home, however, is to persuade the PCs to
take him.. .
Fire and Ice
Setting: Wildspace
Party: 5-6 characters, levels 6-8
Ship: Any of 20 tons or more
Setups
The PCs have learned that shipping in
a certain region has been suffering the rav-
ages of pirates. Rumors indicate that the
vessel doing the damage is called the
Frostbe (one of the ships on the PCs’ list).
The PCs are commissioned by the
elven Imperial Navy to carry a message
to a man-o’-war that is on a supply
mission.
The PCs are travelling in wildspace
(i.e., the DM can drop this adventure in at
any time).
Looks like yotc’ve blundered right
into the middle of something. Up
ahead, a semi-crystalline shape
catches the light as it maneuvers. An
elven Man-0’-war-you’d recognize it
anywhere. The wings are rather asym-
metrical, though, and scorched.
Maybe the thing ran afoul of a radiant
dragon. Or maybe the elves just flew
the damn thing too near to a sun.
(Some elves you’ve met would be
quite capable of doing that, just to get
a closer look at an interestingly-
shaped sunspot.)
It doesn’t look as though the elves’
current opponent burned the wings,
however; it doesn’t seem to be a fire-
user. But the other vessel is definitely
getting the upper hand in the skir-
mish.
It’s a Squid-ship, painted a glaring
red. (Something a little odd about its
shape and rigging . . . ) It’s involved in
a stern chase with the Man-o’-war,the
elven vessel doing its best to outrun its
enemy (interesting!), and not doing a
good job of it, either. The Squid-shipis
firing a continuous barrage of large
boulders, many of them finding their
mark. (Gods, what a rate of fire! How
many catapults are aboard that thing?)
As you watch, a flitter lifts off from
the castle deck of the Man-o’-war.
(Readying for a suicide run? How else
could it hurt the Squid-ship?)The tiny
vessel maneuvers hard, jinking back
and forth to make itself a tough target.
The Squid-shipsees it. One boulder
misses, then another. But the third
strikes it squarely. The flitter disinte-
grates in a ball of flame. (You were
right. Suicide run, packed with greek
fire.)
Another two boulders strike the
Man-o’-war, smashing off one of the
elven vessel’s arching wings. The
Man-o’-war, totally out of control,
starts to tumble as the Squid ship
moves in for the kill . . .
If the PCs don’t get involved, the
Squid-ship will totally destroy the Man-
0’-war and kill every remaining member
of its crew. If they want to save the elves, Dmg 1-8 or 2-16+9 or by spell: spells: each, currently being used as blankets):
they must defeat the Squid-ship them- command, cause fear, cause light and a pair of winged boots (MV 24 (D)).
selves. wounds; enthrall, hold person, spiritual There are 8 boulders stacked on the
The Man-o’-war is 8 hexes directly to hammer; prayer, pyrotechnics; produce forecastle and 6 on the stern castle; the
port of the PCs’ vessel, heading in ex- fire; magic missile, chill touch; fog cloud; others were expended in the battle with
actly the same direction. The Squid-ship SA hurling rocks for 2-20;SD impervi- the Man-o’-war.
is two hexes behind, with the same head- ous to cold: AL CE; THACO 5. Hoarfrost Although Hoarfmst is perhaps too dim
ing. The Man-o’-war is totally incapaci- is a witch doctor (C71w3). Although he to recognize a losing proposition until
tated due to spelljammer shock, and hates to take orders, he has to admit it’s too late, the fire giants won’t fight to
slowing: the Squid-ship has SR 3 and Ma- (grudgingly) that Dav Firestorm is the death. Instead, they’ll surrender . . .
neuverability Class E. smarter than he is, and that everything’s and wait for a chance to turn the tables
The crew of the Squid-shiphas spotted worked out very well with Dav in charge. on their diminutive captors.
the PCs’ vessel. If the PCs remain on their Hoarfrost keeps his pet aboard-a winter
present course, the Squid-ship will go wolf pup he calls Blizzard. Man-o’-war
ahead with its intention of destroying the Blizzard (winter wolf pup): AC 5; MV
Man-o’-war. If the PCs change course and 18;HD4;hp12;#ATl;Drng2-5:SAfrost Depending on alignment and attitude,
begin approaching, the Squid-ship will breath(2-12 points of damage, 5’ range): the PCs may decide to help the elven ves-
gladly change targets and attack them too. AL NE; THACO 15. The pup is loyal to sel or finish it off and loot it themselves.
Hoarfrost, and follows his orders. It will The surviving elves aboard the Man-0’-
war recognize the two options, so they’ll
The Frostfire give its life for its master. He is less than a
be watching the PCs most carefully if
year old, and is only 5 feet tall.
The Squid-ship has been extensively they approach.
modified to meet the needs of its crew: The rigging of the Squid-shiphad to be The Man-o’-warhas been reduced to 12
two fire giants and one frost giant. The modified to allow room for a crew of gi- hull points. Damage to its wings has
giants were originally taken into space ants (this has dropped the vessel’s Ma- dropped its Maneuverability Class to E.
by an ambitious (but somewhat unwise) neuverability Class to E). In addition, the The last hit from the giant vessel caused a
neogi, who was soon killed by his over- entire main deck has been torn out (for critical hit and spelljammer shock; thus
sized slaves. Though unaccustomed to extra headroom), as have the bulkheads their primary helmsman is in a coma.
space, the giants “acquired’ the Squid- in the cargo deck. Giant-sized ladders There is a back-up helmsman who can
ship, which they called the Frostfire, and have been installed so the creatures can take over, but it takes ld8 rounds for the
took up the career of pirates. For the lastreach the forecastle and stern castle. The him to get to the helm. As soon as the ves-
several years, they’ve been doing rather ship’s major helm has been moved below sel is under power, it heads away from the
well at it. to the cargo deck, just for’ard of the miz- battle with a rating of 2. The jettison and
They are casually brutal about the zenmast. The helm itself has been modi- the starboard ballista have been put out of
business of piracy. They use their rock- fied, too-mainly through tearing away commission by boulder hits: the port bal-
throwing abilities to counter the maneu- the arms and back-so Clira can squat lista and the medium catapult are still
verability of their targets. Once the on it (somewhat precariously). Finally, fully functional. Since the catapult is on a
enemy is slowed or immobilized, they the catapults and ballistae have been dis- rotating turret, it can keep the PCs’ vessel
grapple and board, using their superior carded. (The giants each have the range targeted while the Man-o’-war is pulling
weight and strength to their best advan- and effect of a light catapult (and consid- away.
tage. The giants take no prisoners, and erably better THACO), and they can If the PCs make any hostile moves, or
usually torch the gutted ship once throw one boulder per round.) moves that could conceivably be mis-
they’re done with it. Blizzard, the winter wolf, lives below taken as hostile, the Man-o’-war opens
on the cargo deck (he’s incapable of fire. If the PCs communicate peaceful
Dav Firestorm (fire giant): AC - 1; MV making it to the upper decks unless one intent-by matching courses rather than
12; HD 15+2-5; hp 77: #AT 1; Dmg 1-8or of the giants lifts him). intercepting, or by hailing, etc.-the
2-20 + 10;S A hurling rocks for 2-20: SD The cargo deck is also where the fire Man-o’-war will stop and wait for the
resistant to fire: AL LE; THACO 5. Dav is giants sleep. There are two large sleep- other vessel to pull alongside. (The elves
the captain of the ship. ing pallets. The frost giant claims that he really need help, and they’re in no condi-
Clira Firestorm (fire giant): AC -1: prefers to sleep under the stars and he tion for another battle.)
MV12;HD15+2-5;hp78:#ATl:Dmgl- usually slings a huge hammock between The crew of the Man-o’-war is down to
8 or 2-20+ 10 or by spell: spells: none: the mainmast and mizzenmast. 12. Many were killed in a run-in with a
S A hurling rocks for 2-20; SD resistantto The giants’ loot is stashed for’ard in rogue celestial dragon (perhaps the one
fire; AL LE; THACO 5. Clira is Dav’s sis- the cargo deck. They have amassed the from the adventure “Pirate-Wyrm” and it
ter: she is a shaman of 6th level, and is following: 6,000 sp and 2,000 gp (in was in this engagement that the vessel’s
the ship’s helmsman. Because of the sacks); a small obsidian box (250 gp wings were fire-damaged.) Several more
after-effects of spelljamming, she cur- value) containing an elaborate diamond were killed in the giants’ bombardment.
rently has no spells. necklace (5,000 gp): four magnificent The elves have collected the 32 bodies
Hoarfrost Crystalspear (frost giant): carpets of elven manufacture (750 gp and laid them out respectfully in the
AC 0; MV 12: HD 14+1-4; hp 70;#AT 1;
cargo hold (area 3 on the main deck);
their intention is to “bury them in space”
with all ceremony as soon as possible.
The vessel, which is named Spar-
rowhawk, is under the command of C a p
tain Adrin Willowleaf of the Imperial
Navy. His second in command is Ser-
geant Berl Mooncrest. The currently
comatose helmsman is Pilot/Wizard
Marta Mornstar; the back-up helmsman
is Pilotiwizard Tel Astrid.
Captain Adrin Willowleaf: AC 1; MV 6;
F10; hp 62; #AT 3/2; Dmg by weapon
(wheel lock pistol (1-4), dagger (1-4)): Str
13, Dex 12, Con 13, Int 13, Wis 12, Cha
14; AL CG; THACO 11. Captain Willow-
leaf wears an elaborately ornamented set
of full plate armor; he carries a long
sword + 1, a dagger and a wheel lock pis-
tol (enough ammunition for 6 shots). Wil-
lowleaf is a proud commander, and will
not allow his vessel or its cargo to fall
into non-elven hands. If it looks as
though defeat is unavoidable, he will
scuttle his ship by detonating the stock-
pile of greek fire and smoke powder in
the cargo bay.
Sergeant Berl Mooncrest: AC 4; MV
9; F7; hp 27; #AT 312; Dmg by weapon
(long sword (1-8), dagger (1-4), light
crossbow(1-4)); Str 14, Dex 13, Con 11,
Int 12, Wis 12, Cha 13; AL CG; THACO
14. Sergeant Mooncrest wears banded
mail; he carries a long sword, dagger and
light crossbow.
Pilotiwizard Marta Mornstar: AC 10;
MV 12; W12; hp 28; #AT 1; Dmg by
weapon or spell: Str 9, Dex 11, Con 11,
Int 16, Wis 12, Cha 12; spells: none; AL
CG; THACO 17. The pilot/wizardis unar-
mored and unarmed. She is currently in
a coma from spelljammer shock, and will
remain so for 1-4days.
PilotiwizardTel Astrid AC 10; MV 12;
W5; hp 8; #AT 1; Dmg by weapon (dagger
(1-4), dart (1-4)) or spell; Str 10, Dex 10,
Con 11, Int 14, Wis 11, Cha 12; spells:
none; AL CG; THACO 19.Astrid wears no
armor; he carries a dagger and three
darts. Since he is in contact with the
spelljamming helm, he has no spells.
Crewmember (elf; x8):AC 5; MV 9; F2;
hp4,5,5,7,9,9, 12, 15; #AT 1; Dmg by
weapon (long sword (1-8), dagger (1-4)):
AL CG; THACO 19. The standard crew-
members wear chain mail and carry long
swords and daggers. Four also wield
short bows. Despite great losses, the
crew’s morale is still high (16), though
this is due to their sense of duty and dis-
cipline, not fighting spirit. They support
their captain’s intention to scuttle the
ship before letting it fall into enemy
hands (although they’ll certainly do their
best to make sure they’re not aboard
when that happens).
The Man-o’-war’s mission was to de-
liver a supply of greek fire and smoke
powder to an elven Armada. The cargo
holds are filled with these unstable sub-
stances. There is enough greek fire liq-
uid for 100 shots from a standard
projector; the liquid is stored in small
casks. Large oak barrels contain a total
of 200 charges of smoke powder
(enough for 20 bombard shots). If de-
tonated, the cargo will cause 3-30 (3d10)
points of hull damage to any ship within
1 hex of the Sparrowhawk’s final posi-
tion. Anyone on board the Sparrowhawk
will be killed instantly.
Concluding the Adventure
If the giant-manned Frostfire escapes,
it will continue its career of ravaging the
spaceways. Future adventurescan be de-
veloped around hunting it down.
The cargo aboard the Sparrowhawk
was important enough for the Man-o’-war
to be kept under observation via scrying
devices. If the PCs assist the crippled el-
ven ship toward its destination (an elven
Armada currently tethered to the Royal
Docks of the Rock of Bral), the Imperial
Navy will know about it, and will send an
undamaged Man-o’-war to intercept the
PCs. This vessel will convey the official
thanks of the Navy and will take over es-
cort duties, allowing the PCs to g o on
their way. As well as that of the Navy, the
PCs will have earned the personal grati-
tude of Captain Adrin Willowleaf.
(Whether this gratitude converts into
anything of monetary value is entirely up
to the DM.) Now that the PCs are known
and respected by the Imperial Fleet, fu-
ture adventures can certainly develop in-
volving them in the elves’ plans.
If, instead, the PCs finish off the elven
ship, the Imperial Fleet will also know
about it. Descriptions of the PCs and
their vessels will be disseminated among
the elven Fleet, and the PCs might find
themselves the target of unprovoked at-
tacks by elven vessels in the future.

Violent Death
Setting: Wildspace
Party: 5-6 characters, levels 7-10
Ship: Tradesman or equivalent
Setups
The PCs hear rumors that a large pi-
rate vessel is attacking shipping in a cer-
tain area. These are second-handrumors
only: no actual victim of one of these at-
tacks is available for comment. (Could
this mean that the whole thing is a lie. . .
or has no one who’s met up with this ship
lived?)
The PCs hear rumors that a ruined
ship-a prime target for salvage-is
drifting in a certain area of wildspace.
The PCs are travelling in wildspace
and stumble upon an inert ship (i.e., the
DM can drop this adventure in at any
time).
There’s no warning. One moment
your ship is sailing along at full spell-
jamming speed: the next, you feel the
subtle internal shift that means you’ve
dropped to tactical speed. You glance
at the helmsman, who’s even now con-
versing with the navigator. Both look
at you and shake their heads. None of
their doing.
The lookout’s call answers the
question you’d been about to pose:
“Object hard a-port!” You lean over
the rail and strain your eyes.
It takes you a moment to spot a
Tradesman, topped out with extra rig-
ging for additional maneuverability,
but totally inert: no running or naviga-
tion beacons, no lanterns, no light
spilling through the large “eye” port-
holes. And no movement. No con-
trolled movement, at least. As you
watch it for a moment, you notice that
the vessel is tumbling slowly.
The range is extreme for a good
look-1.200 yards: any further and
you would have blazed by the Trades-
man at 4 million miles per hour-but
as you strain your eyes you can pick
out a few more details. Much of the
vessel’s extra rigging is torn and splin-
tered, and a spanker fin is almost to-
tally ripped away. And isn’t that a hole
smashed in the small vessel’s hull?
The Tradesman is at a bearing of 90°
to port, even along your gravity plane.
Since the Tradesman is tumbling slowly
end over end (one revolution every min-
ute), its heading keeps changing. It is not
moving relative to your vessel.
The Sculpin
If the PCs want to investigate, it’s an
easy matter to bring their ship near to the
stationary Tradesman. The only potential
problem relates to boarding: the dead
vessel’s slow tumbling means its gravity
plane is moving relative to the PCs’ ship.
Even this should pose little problem as
long as the boarding party carefully syn-
chronizes its entry into the Tradesman’s
atmosphere envelope. Once the party is
aboard the Tradesman, of course, the
ship’s motion is immaterial.
Use the ship plans from the “Trades-
man” card in the SPELLJAMMER”
boxed set. All areas in the following de-
scription correspond to the numbered
areas on the plans.
The ship is in total darkness. The ves-
sel’s air envelope is fouled. Although the
DM shouldn’t mention it expressly, there
is no one aboard the Tradesman, and
there are no corpses.
Main Deck
The deck is littered with debris:
shards of rigging, splinters of wood,
here and there a broken crossbow bolt
or a shattered sword. Small chunks of
rock grind underfoot (projectiles from
a jettison, perhaps, or maybe frag
ments of a catapult missile). The hard-
wood deck is blackened in several
places, as though lanterns were
dropped or shattered, spreading burn-
ing oil over the planks. And in more
than half a dozen places are large
stains that could only be blood. The
catapult in the bow is loaded, and the
compartment holding the shot is al-
most empty. In contrast, the stern-
mounted ballista is shattered (it looks
as though an over-eager crewman
“dry-fired” the weapon without a mis-
sile properly loaded, and the stress
tore the device apart).
The conclusion is obvious: the
Tradesman was fighting for its life and
it seems to have lost.
The forward catapult is usable and can
be salvaged if the PCs want to invest the
time. Five catapult rocks and three bal-
lista missiles remain. Nothing else usa-
ble can be salvaged.
The doors to the forward and aft pas-
sages have been smashed off their
hinges, and the frames show the marks
of multiple axe blows.
Cargo Deck
1. Bridge.
Deck and bulkheads are charred as
though a fire burned here for several
minutes before going out. The star-
board “eye” porthole is shattered. A
brass tube lies on the deck, a tube
with a massive dent in it, as though
somebody used it as a weapon. As the
weakened deck shifts under your
weight, the tube rolls and you can
hear a tinkling sound from within it.
The tube is, of course, a telescope,
used in desperation as a weapon by the
navigator. There is nothing else of value
or interest left on the bridge.
2. Companionway.
A notched battleaxe is imbedded
deep into the wood of the mainmast
. . .just at neck height, as though the
intended recipient of a mighty blow
had ducked out of the way just in
time. The leather-bound handle bears
scratches and striations that could
have been made by strangely-
designed mail gloves . . . or by claws.
Anyone with a Strength of 16 or more
can extract the axe from the mast. The
weapon is notched, but still usable. The
axe head itself is of an unfamiliar design.
(Anyone with the nonweapon proficiency
of ancient history or weaponsmithing
may roll a proficiency check. A success-
ful roll means that they recognize the de-
sign as one common several hundred
years ago on a planet in this shell.)
3. Chartroom.
The maptable is shattered, and the
charts are strewn everywhere. A dark-
bladed daaaer lies in the far corner.
The dagger blade is covered with a
substance that could be dried blood.. .
if blood were black and smelled of putre-
faction.
4. Captain’s quarters.
ended and thrown against the bulk-
head. Slashes and hack-marks in its
wood imply that somebody tried to
use it-unsuccessfully, it would
seem-as a shield. Against the far
bulkhead is a small desk.
The desk is secured with a simple lock
( + 15%chance of picking it). If no thief is
available, a blow from a blunt weapon
that inflicts 3 or more points of damage
will smash the desk open.
The desk contains the ship’s log, a
leather bound book. If the characters
spend three or more rounds perusing the
log. they’ll find that the Tradesman is
named the Sculpin, and that its captain is
a human named Darathon. From re-
cords, they can determine that the
Sculpin is an honest Tradesman, and has
never been involved in piracy or smug-
gling. The log also tells the PCs the
Sculpin’s current destination and last
port of call. (The DM must determine
these depending on circumstances. For
example, a log entry might read “Ten
days out of Ginsel in Greyspace, on
course for the Tears of Selune in Realm-
space.”) The ship’s cargo is listed as 3
tons of honeywood, a softwood favored
for works of art, worth 7,000 gp per ton.
In addition to the log, there is a small,
locked wooden box. Inside is a small vel-
vet bag containing 4 gems (base value
500 gp), and a tiny painting framed in
gold (10 gp value for the frame). The
painting depicts a rather handsome
young man with straw-colored hair and
beard, and bright green eyes, next to a
young woman with very similar features.
(It’s the captain, Darathon, and his sister,
a s the PCs might easily guess.)
5 and 6. Locker E HeadlStorage.
Both rooms contain the usual brica-
brac needed to run, maintain and repair a
ship: ropes, spikes, belaying pins, etc.
There is nothing of value.
7 . Cargo Holds.
As you look into the dark space,
you expect to find the holds empty.
(Of course they’ll be empty. The ship
was raided and pillaged, wasn’t it?)
But no, the holds contain stacks of
wood, still secured to the decks with
ropes. Certainly, some of the pieces of
wood have come loose. But all in all,
the cargo is undisturbed.
What in Hades is going on here?
Both holds are loaded, containing the
3 tons of honeywood described in the
ship’s log, distributed evenly between
the holds to balance the vessel. There’s
no evidence that anything has been
taken.
There is evidence that there’s been
some trouble below, however. Lying on
the deck, against the port hull, is a
human-sized helmet that has been
staved in by a powerful blow from a mace
or hammer.
The port hold has a huge hole torn in
the hull, as if by a heavy catapult missile.
8. Sail Locker.
The door hangs from one hinge,
and the rolled canvas within is torn
From the evidence of a struggle
within, it appears that a member of the
Sculpin’s crew tried to hide in the sail
locker, but was found by the raiders who
had boarded the vessel.
9 and 10. Crew quarters.
Hammocks used to hang from hooks
on the bulkheads and overhead, but
most have been cut down. There is noth-
ing of value remaining in either room.
1 1. GalleylKitchenlPantry.
The floor is covered with food and
broken crockery, both of which fell
from shelves along the bulkheads
when the ship was struck. A table lies
smashed and overturned against a
cast iron stove set against the hull. A
heavy cleaver is buried in the bulk-
head next to the door: evidence of a
missed throw.
12. Helmsman’s quarters.
Unmistakable signs of a pitched
battle here, as though the surviving
crew chose this place to make their fi-
nal stand. The door is smashed from
its hinges, and a heavy couch-
bearing evidence of two score axe-
and sword-strokes-lies directly in-
side. Crossbow bolts are embedded in
the inside of the bulkhead, obviously
shot at figures coming through the
shattered door. The helm itself-an
ornate throne with wide arms and an
intricately-carved back-is intact, al-
beit very blood-stained.
The ship’s minor helm is still func.
tional; it is the ship’s only power source.
Partially concealed behind the helm is a
chest containing the personal belong
ings of the Sculpin’s helmsman. Along
with spell components and a holy sym-
bol to the god Pholtus of Greyspace,
there is a small velvet bag and a note-
book.
The bag contains a circlet woven from
platinum wire with a browpiece of ala-
baster; its apparent value is approxi-
mately 6,000 gp. If detect magic is cast
on it, it radiates a strong aura of abjura-
tion and necromancy. The circlet allows
its wearer to cast Serten’s spell immunity
once per day and hold undead three‘
times per day, each at the 16th level of
ability. The circlet was created by a
wizardlpriest who worshipped the god
Seker (Egyptian pantheon), to aid his fol-
lowers to seek out and destroy powerful
undead. Its powers are linked to the pres-
ence of powerful undead: it only be-
comes functional when it is within 100
yards of a lich, vampire, or equally pow-
erful undead. Until such a time, it is inert,
and its wearer gains no knowledge of its
powers. When such a powerful undead
draws near, however, the wearer immedi-
ately becomes aware of the circlet’s
powers and history. The circlet was cre-
ated to deal with one major undead crea-
ture only. Once a lich or vampire has
been destroyed using the power of the
circlet, t h e item crumbles t o non-
magical platinum dust (worth 500 gp).
The notebook details how thesculpin’s
helmsman, a priest named Greybriar,
bought the circlet from a mind flayer
trader who apparently was unaware that
the item was magical. Greybriar’s notes
go on to explain that he tried to deter-
mine its powers and significance, but
with little success. All he knows for sure
is that it has something to do with death
magic. Since such an item might be evil,
he has sworn never to experiment with it
himself, lest he put his immortal soul in
peril.
Death Ship. ..
Exactly 30 minutes after the PCs
encounter the Sculpin, the lookout spots
another vessel approaching. When first
sighted, its bearing is 165O starboard(a1-
most directly astern) and 30° below the
gravity plane of the PCs’ vessel. It is on
an interception course with the PCs’
ship, and is travelling at 6 hexes per
round.
The approaching vessel is a
topped out Galleon with multiple
banks of sails set. A s the range
closes, you can see figures in the rig-
ging, adjusting the canvas to fine-
tune the ship’s course. There’s
movement on the decks, and star-
light glints off metal.
The ship matches the standard Gal-
leon description in the SPELWAMMER”
boxed set, except as follows:
The two medium ballistas on the forecas-
tle have been replaced with two heavy
catapults, while the light catapult on the
stern castle has been joined by two me-
dium ballistas. On each side of the main
deck, level with the mainmast, is a heavy
ballista and a light ballista. These light
ballistas are loaded with grappling
hooks, while the heavy ballistas are
loaded with standard ballista missiles. Its
extra sails improve its maneuverability
class from F (one class worse than usual
because of its crew) to E; as a conse-
quence, its minimum crew is 30 instead
of 20.
The vessel is powered by a major helm
and has a SR of 7.
The hull of the ship is painted blood-
red above the “waterline” and space-
black below. Anyone using a telescope
or other vision enhancement device will
see the name of the ship painted in black
on its bow: Nex. A character with a non-
weapon proficiency involving languages
can make a proficiency roll with a -2
penalty to recognize the derivation of the
name: it comes from a largely-forgotten
human tongue and means “violent
death.’’
The Nex has one intention: to attack
the PCs’ vessel and slay everyone on
board, regardless of cost to itself. Its
captainlhelmsman is exceptionally in-
telligent, and the vessel’s tactics will re-
flect this. The Nexwill use its high speed
and considerable firepower to its best
advantage, trying to seriously weaken
or incapacitate the PCs’ vessel before it
undertakes boarding operations. It will
use the tactics most appropriate to the
vessel it is fighting. Perhaps surpris-
ingly, it will not flee or turn aside even if
the PCs’ vessel obviously overmatches
it. It will even attack a flotilla of vessels.
. . .And Those Aboard Her
The Nex is a “death ship,’’ captained by
a lich and manned by 50 undead (it
doesn’t matter that this is over the ship’s
standard capacity, because undead need
no air). All aboard the vessel will fight un-
til they are totally destroyed.
Manara the Lich
The captain and helmsman of the Nex
is a female lich named Manara. A power-
ful mage and an intrepid explorer of the
Flow during her life, she became a little
too arrogant for the tastes of several
demigods. She intruded on a sphere that
these demigods had reserved for their
own recreation. When informed of her in-
fraction, she merely laughed and re-
jected their “pact” in the interests of
exploration.
In retribution, the demigods arranged
for Manara and her crew to be slain by a
shipload of giff which happened along,
and then laid a curse on her which turned
her into a lich. Her crew they animated as
ju-ju zombies. In addition, the demigods
agreed among themselves that she could
only achieve final oblivion-which
Manara would have greatly preferred
over undeath-by dying in a glorious
battle with another ship. If Manara didn’t
play along with the rules-if she decided
to simply ram an asteroid, for example,
or if she didn’t employ her best efforts(in
the demigods‘ estimation) during the
battle-the divine beings would simply
wish her back into existence, still in her
lich state. This, they decided, would be
good punishment for her arrogance and
worth a chuckle as well.
At first, not believing the demigods,
she provoked other vessels until they at-
tacked, and then just did nothing until
they destroyed her. In each case, how-
ever, the demigods wished her back into
existence as they promised. When she fi-
nally came to believe that her only es-
cape would be to meet the demigods’
conditions, she went on a rampage
across the spaceways, the likes of which
had rarely been seen.
Any ship she encountered she at-
tacked, no quarter asked nor given, us-
ing all her intelligence and all her
magical power (let the demigods dare to
accuse her of not employing best ef-
forts). She never bothered to plunder the
vessels she defeated (what value has loot
to her?).
At first, she would let survivors go. But
as the decades began to weigh upon her,
her sanity started to slip and her align-
ment changed. Where once she had been
Chaotic Good, she now grew more and
more evil. Her behavior changed, too: in-
stead of sparing survivors, she would
slay them all, and the demigods would
animate them to fill out her crew (why let
others live when she could never again
taste life?).
Her hope is to meet up with a vessel
she can’t possibly destroy: an elven ar-
mada, for example, or a neogi deathspi-
der . . . perhaps even the Spel/jammer
itself. But, whether through plain luck or
the manipulations of the demigods, the
Nex never ran into anything it couldn’t
handle. Until possibly now . . .
(Unknown to Manara, one of the demi-
gods she offended has started to take
pity on her. He can’t back out of the pact
with the others, but he can secretly aid
Manara. It was this demigod, in the guise
of a mind flayer, who sold Seker’s circlet
to Greybriar, the Sculpin’s helmsman,
and then guided the Nex to the Sculpin.
His hopes that Greybriar would use the
circlet to defeat Manara came to naught.
But now the PCs have arrived on the
scene, and once more there is hope.)
Manara the Lich: AC 0; MV 6; HD 14;
hp 60; #AT 1; Dmg 1-10: SA fear, paraly-
sis, spell use; SD spell immunity, + 1 or
better magical weapon to hit; AL CE;
THACO 7. Manara has retained her hu-
man appearance better than most liches.
Her long dark hair remains, in patches,
and her face and hands are still covered
with skin (albeit skin stretched tightly
over bones). Sullen red lights glow in her
eye sockets. She wears a tattered red
robe of a fashion worn three centuries
ago by explorers of noble birth. At her
hip is a jewel-encrusted dagger (value
750 gp).
Since she is the NexS only occupant
able to use the spelljamming helm, when
the PCs first encounter her she is incapa-
ble of spell use (a side effect of the helm).
Should the PCs stay in the vicinity for
more than 24 hours, however, Manara

can cast the following spells: chill touch,
detect undead, burning hands, enlarge,
spider climb; spectral hand, Melfs acid ar-
row, darkness 15’ radius, fog cloud, shat-
ter; feign death, hold undead, uampiric
touch, fly, wind wall; contagion, enema-
tion, fire shield, polymorph other; animate
dead, magicjar, summon shadow, teleki-
nesis; death spell, disintegrate; finger of
death. In addition to her own magical
powers, she wears a ring of the ram (32
charges) and carries a wand of magic
missiles (45 charges), both of which she
can employ once away from the helm.
If she thinks that the PCs actually have
a chance of defeating her, Manara will
fight all the harder, just to make sure that
the demigods can’t accuse her of “pull-
ing her punches.”
As with all liches, Manara’s life es-
sence is stored in a phylactery. In her
case, however, she has no reason to hide
it. Instead, she wears it openly around
her neck a pendant with a cheap glass
“gem” (all she considers her existence to
be worth). This gem radiates a strong
aura of magic, tinged with a hint of
Manara’s personality.
The Hex is manned by 50 ju-ju zom-
bies, animated by Manara or by the
demigods who cursed her. The majority
are humans and demihumans. Several,
however, are different kinds of creatures.
Some decades ago. Manara came upon a
single neogi with two umber hulk slaves
in a damselfly. . . easy prey for the Nex.
These three unusual zombies are among
Manara’s crew.
A typical crewmember has the follow-
ing statistics:
Ju-ju zombie: AC 6; MV 9; HD 3 + 12;
hp 15-42; #AT 1; Dmg 3-12 or weapon;
AL N(E); THACO 15. The ju-ju zombies
are armed with a variety of weapons: the
typical range you might find on a pirate
ship (swords, axes, etc.). Fifteen are
armed with light crossbows (dmg 1-4),
and ten carry wheel lock pistols (dmg 1-
4). All are competent at handling the r i g
ging and at operating the ship’s heavy
weapons. Their instructions are to de-
stroy all living beings in any way possi-
ble.
Among the zombies is one that the
PCs might recognize: a young, hand-
some man with straw-colored hair and
beard, green eyes. . . and a lethal sword-
cut to the head. He is, of course,
Darathon, captain of the Sculpin.
(Darathon is no different from the other
zombies. He’s included here to satisfy
the PCs’ curiosity about what happened
to the Sculpin.)
Umber hulk zombies (x2): AC 2; MV 6;
HD 9+8; hp 55, 61;#AT 3; Dmg 3-12/3-
12/1-10;SAconfusion;ALN;THACO 11.
Like other zombies, the umber hulks are
slow, and always attack last in a round.
Neogi zombie: AC 3; MV 6; HD 6; hp
28; #AT 3: Dmg 1-4/1-411.8;SA slowing
poison; AL N; THACO 15. Although dead
and animated as a zombie, the neogi re-
tains some of its race’s personality: given
the choice, it will always hang back from
combat, by preference sheltering behind
the protective bulk of the umber hulks.
Tactics
Under Manara’s orders, the Nex will
use its considerable firepower to damage
and cripple the PCs’ vessel. The first
shots will be targeted at the ship itself,
hoping to damage the rigging and de-
crease maneuverability, or even cause a
critical hit. As the Nex closes, the shots
will be targeted at crew on deck, concen-
trating on characters that look particu-
larly “tough” (i.e. figures wearing plate
mail and carrying battleaxes rather than
unarmored sailors with daggers).
All of the Nex’s weapons are fully
manned: 5 zombies each for the two
heavy catapults, one for the light cata-
pult, 4 each for the two heavy ballistas, 2
each for the two medium ballistas, and 1
each for the two light ballistas, for a total
of 25 crew. That means 22 ju-ju zombies
plus the umber hulks and neogi are free
for other activities. Twenty of these are
armed with light crossbows, as men-
tioned above, and will begin firing when
the ships get close enough.
When the ships are in the same hex,
the Nex will attempt to grapple. The light
ballistas will be used to fire grappling
hooks, while 10 of the zombie crew will
assist by throwing grappling hooks of
their own. As soon as the PCs’ vessel is
successfully grappled, the zombies will
leave the heavy weapons, and all of the
Nex’s crew will try to swarm aboard the
enemy vessel.
At this time, since propulsion is no
longer needed, Manara will leave the
helm and come up on deck. She will not
leave the Nex, but will use her magic
items to maximum effect. Note that her
ring of the ram will be very effective
against characters in the rigging, or
fighting near the ship’s rails. (Characters
who fall overboard will probably be un-
able to get back into the fray. Should the
Nexwin, Manara will order her crossbow-
men to slay any who’ve fallen over-
board.)
The Nex
Below decks, the ship is in total dark-
ness (Manara and the zombies have no
need for light). In general, the parts of the
ship not required for maneuvering or
fighting are very badly maintained: the
decks are scarred and cracked, some of
the bulkheads have dry rot, and there is
dust everywhere. There is little of value
anywhere on the ship (except as speci-
fied below).
The numbers in the following descrip-
tions refer to the ship plans from the Gal-
leon card in the SPELWAMMER” boxed
set. Not all areas or rooms are mentioned
in the descriptions, since many of them
are empty; if an area is not mentioned,
assume that it is empty and unused.
(Early on in her “career” as a lich,
Manara discarded most inessential items
throughout the ship.)
Main Deck
1. Rope, line and anchor storage.
The room contains two rusty anchors
and lengths of rotting rope.
3. Captain’s cabin.
For a moment you can almost
imagine that a living person uses this
room. There’s a small sleeping cot
folded down from the bulkhead, and
it’s covered with a blanket. One bulk-
head is covered with shelves, almost
groaning with leather-bound books.
And in one corner is a small wooden
desk.
The sensation of life lasts only a
second, however. Then the smell of
rot and corruption catches at your
throat. Everything here is mouldy, de-
caying. The cabin is as dead as every-
thing else on board this death ship . . .
Manara was unable to discard every-
thing that meant something to her when
she was alive, as this room shows. The
books contain records of the great ex-
plorers of the past, and even some tales
of Manara’s own achievements . . . or at
least, they used to. The books’ pages
have rotted, and the process has been
helped along by two bookworms (AC 2;
MV 12, Br3; HD 114;hp2,2; #AT nil; Dmg
nil; AL N; THACO nla). which were acci-
dentally brought on board by one of
Manara’s animated “recruits.”
The desk is unlocked and contains a
large leather-bound book: the log of the
Nex.
Out of habit, Manara kept the ship’s
log for the first year or so after she be-
came a lich, before deciding it was a
waste of time. The language she used is a
rare dialect of the common tongue,
which is difficult to translate. Characters
with the ability to read languages
(thieves, for example) have double their
normal chances to read the log, to a max-
imum of 95%.
The log contains records of Manara’s
explorations before her death (which
mioht or miaht not be of some value or
intgrest to t<e PCs), and the story of her
run-in with the demigods. The demigods
have used their magic to expunge from
the log all information that would lead
others to their private “entertainment
sphere” (such edits are simply blank
spaces). The PCs might find the tale in-
teresting, however, as it should answer
many of their questions about Manara.
5. Spelljammer helm.
Manara will be present here only if the
PCs manage to get aboard the Nex while
it’s still maneuvering. If present, she will
be seated on the helm.
The Nex’s major helm itself is not an
elaborate affair: it’s simply a wide-armed
chair made of dark wood, with no pad-
ding or upholstery. An unlocked box
stashed beneath the helm contains
Manara’s spell book, which records the
following spells: chill touch, detect un-
dead, burning hands, enlarge, spider
climb; spectral hand, Melf‘s acid arrow,
darkness 15‘ radius, fog cloud, shatter;
feign death, hold undead, uampiric touch,
fly, wind wall; contagion, enervation, fire
shield, polymorph other; animate dead,
magic jar, summon shadow, telekinesis;
death spell, disintegrate; finger of death.
6. Chart room.
~~
Charts in long rolls are stored in
racks on the bulkheads. The map ta-
ble in the middle of the cabin has a
chart laid on it. A pair of dividers and
parallel rulers lie discarded, as though
the navigator had just finished chart-
ing a course. In one corner is a small
chair, secured to the deck.
The charts on the walls are so rotted
and decayed that even the lightest touch
makes them crumble to dust. The chart
on the maptable is in slightly better con-
dition, and the instruments are fully usa-
ble. The DM can decide exactly what area
of space the chart depicts (this can either
be a useless chart or a treasure map).
The small chair in the corner is actu-
ally a minor helm, the Nex’s back-up
means of propulsion.
SteerageDeck
3. Brig. The door is locked.
I room. . .
The monster is a wight: AC 5; MV 12;
HD 4+3; hp 25; #AT 1; Dmg 1-4;S A en-
ergy drain; SD hit only by silver or + 1 or
better magical weapon; AL L E THACO
15.
Soon after Manara’s death, she
thought a high-level sage might be able
to break her curse. She could hardly walk
into a library or university in her condi-
tion, so she attacked a ship that was fer-
rying a well-known sage between
planets, and kidnapped the old man. She
put her problem to him, but he was either
unable or unwilling to help her. In a rage,
she locked him in the brig and left him
there to die.
The sage’s anger at being treated in
such a manner was so great that it sur-
vived the man’s physical death. His spirit
has remained bound to this plane and to
his mortal remains in the hope that he
could finally wreak vengeance on
Manara. As soon as the PCs opened the
door, the sage’s spirit animated his body
as an undead creature.
The undead sage has one goal, and
one goal alone: to confront Manara and
destroy her, or be destroyed himself in
the attempt. He has no interest in the
PCs, other than as obstacles. Thus, he’s
not really attacking them when he rushes
through the door, just trying to get past
them (the PCs probably won’t see it that
way, of course). If the PCs attack him, he
will fight back.
The undead sage will search
throughout the Nex until he finds
Manara, or her body. If he doesn’t find
her aboard the Nex, he will try to board
the PCs’ vessel to continue his search
there. If Manara is nowhere to be found
on either vessel, he will assume that
the PCs have destroyed her, and his
spirit will finally be at rest; his body will
crumble to dust. If he finds Manara,
however, he will attack her with his
bare claws until one or the other of
them is destroyed. If the sage manages
to best Manara, his vengeance is satis-
fied, and his body crumbles to dust.
At no time will the undead sage com-
municate with the PCs, even if they use
speak with dead or equivalent magic
(the sage simply has more important
things on his mind). Also, because of
his focus on revenge, he is turned as a
spectre.
23
Concluding the Adventure
A strong party should be able to defeat
Manara and her crew, although it will
probably be a tough fight. A weaker
party should be able to escape.
Once Manara is defeated, the PCs
might be disappointed at the lack of trea-
sure aboard the Nex. Remember, how-
ever, that they have the chance to
acquire Manara’s spell book and her
magic items, plus a major and minor
helm-nothing to sneeze at. (They also
have the cargo from theSculpin, and var-
ious other items as well.) If a PC used the
circlet found on the Sculpin during the
battle, it will crumble into dust immedi-
ately on Manara’s destruction.
Should Manara survive the encoun-
ter-either through defeating the PCs or
through not being able to prevent their
escape-she will continue to terrorize
the spaceways until she finally meets a
foe tough enough to defeat her. If the PCs
escape, a future adventure can revolve
around their quest to destroy the lich-
ship once and for all.
Forgotten But Not Gone
Setting: Wildspace
Party: 3-6 characters, levels 6-8
Ship: Any
Setups
The PCs have heard that there is pi-
rate activity in a particular region of wild-
space. Rumors indicate that perhaps one
of their bounty pirates is responsible.
The PCs have heard tell that an
abandoned hulk was seen floating in a
certain area of space. They decide, or are
asked, to investigate the possibility of
salvage.
The PCs are travelling in wildspace
and stumble upon an inert ship (i.e., the
DM can drop this adventure in at any
ime).
“Nautiloid off the starboard bow!”
your lookout cries.
“Battle stations!” you yell, squint-
ing to pick out the illithid vessel
against the black velvet of the sky. Not
all mind flayers are hostile, but
enough are to warrant a few precau-
tions.
There’s the vessel, its distinctive
spiral hull painted a particularly
nauseating shade of greenish-mauve.
Wait. There’s something just not
right about the shape. Something
different. . .
Of course. The ship’s long piercing
ram is missing. Broken off, it looks
like. And isn’t the spiral hull mis-
shapen as well? Slightly flattened at
the stern, as if by a heavy impact?
There’s something else, too: the
ship is tumbling slowly, end over end,
completing one revolution in perhaps
five minutes. A Nautiloid under com-
mand wouldn’t be doing that. Could
the ship be abandoned?
Or is it some kind of mind flayer
trick?
The Nautiloid is 4 hexes away from the
PCs’ vessel. The ship’stumble is too slow
to cause any serious problems with
boarding.
Derelict
Once the proud ship Void Reaper, the
Nautiloid is, in fact, a drifting hulk. The
mind flayers ran afoul of an unknown
foe, and were defeated in battle. No mind
flayers survived the confrontation.
The vessel itself is a little the worse for
wear. The piercing ram and much of the
rigging have been torn away. The hull
has been staved in at the stern, shatter-
ing the aft portion of the scout deck (and
incidentally destroying the vessel’s se-
ries helm). Should the PCs wish to sail
this vessel (perhaps under a temporary
helm), it has a Maneuverability Class of
E, and only 6 hull points remaining until
it’s had a complete refit. The air within
the ship is fouled, and is filled with the
stench of decay.
Command Station
1. Captain’s Chair.
Heavy impact has weakened the struc-
tural integrity of the walkway supporting
the chair. If a character weighing more
than 150 pounds (including equipment)
walks out to the chair, there is a 50%
chance that the walkway will break. The
fall to the bridge deck will inflict 2d6
points of damage.
2. Captain’s Day Room.
Papers and books are scattered every.
where, flung from shelves, etc. by ram-
ming impact. There is a desk of human
design, and in one of its drawers is the
ship’s log (written in the illithid tongue,
of course). If anyone can read it, it identi-
fies the vessel as the Void Reaper under
the command of captain “Head Peeler.”
The last entries indicate that the vessel
was involved in slave-trading with a
neogi deathspider.
Shoved to the back of the drawer is a
small pouch that contains 3 ambers (100
gp base).
Scout Deck
1. Forward Observer.
The red-tinted window has been
smashed. A dead mind flayer, killed
by a crushing blow to the head, is
crumpled beneath the window.
2. Series Helm.
The hull has been smashed in, leav-
ing a gaping hole. The four small
seats that made up the series helm
have been destroyed. Crushed mind
flayers still sit in two of the chairs.
Bridge Deck
1. Main Saloon.
The door has been smashed from
its hinges. The broken door and the
frame show marks of axe blows. The
inside of the saloon is a mess. The tap-
estries have been torn from the walls,
the leather hassocks scattered and
hacked, the small oil lamps smashed
by heavy blows. Two mind flayers lie
dead, but apparently took at least one
attacker with them: a dwarf-sized hel-
met, its front discolored and warped
by extreme heat, lies on the floor by
the door.
All bodies within the Void Reaper have
been dead for several weeks.
2. Bridge Floor.
Signs of combat everywhere: blood
stains (illithid and mammalian), bro-
ken arrows, here a riven shield and
there a ruined light crossbow. A dead
illithid with a crossbow bolt buried in
its throat lies crumpled at the bottom
of the port stairway.
3. Ventral Observers.
The port window has been shat-
tered and its door smashed inward.
(Somebody obviously broke in this
way.)
4. Upper Battle Station.
It must have been some fight! The
racks that held ammunition for the
medium ballistas are empty. One of
the ballistas is smashed and slightly
burned. The other two look to be in
working order. Crossbow bolts are im-
bedded everywhere. One of the doors
has been blown from its hinges, either
by magic or a massive firearm of
some kind.
Battle Deck
1 and 2. Officers’ Quarters.
Both doors have been broken down,
and the interiors of both rooms ran-
sacked. Nothing of value remains.
3. Sail Storage.
The canvas is partially burned.
(Somebody apparently tried to light a
fire here, but it seems to have gone
out by itself. Trying to destroy the ship
. . . and the evidence of what hap
pened?)
4. Chart Room.
A dead illithid is sprawled over the
maptable, a crossbow bolt in the back
of the head; probably never knew
what hit him.
The charts-all in illithid
symbology-are untouched. The PCs
might find some use for these.
5. Cargo Hatch. The hatch is closed.
6. Assembly Deck.
Something large and black hangs
in the air in the middle of the open
space. You spot each other at the
same moment. The black creature
turns agilely and hurtles at you,
mouth agape.
The creature is a night skawer (AC 3;
MV18;HD6;hp28;#ATl;Dmgl-lO;SA
swallow; AL N; THACO 15; see Lorebook
ofthe Void, page 85) that came aboard to
“graze” the ship. It ate everything worth
eating in this open area, but was too
large to fit through doorways or stair-
cases to search elsewhere.
If seriously challenged and badly
wounded, the skavver will flee. The crea-
ture’s belly contains a short sword, three
crossbow bolts, a helmet, a golden
bracer (75 gp value), a brass oil lamp,
and a dagger + I.
Cargo Deck
1. Captain’s Cabin.
Both doors have been smashed in
by heavy axe blows, and the room
within looks as though a whirlwind
went through it. Stuff is scattered eve-
rywhere (signs of a struggle, you say?)
and here and there the walls show
scorch-marks that bear mute witness
to magic use. A dead illithid lies in a
heap against the wall (the captain, you
presume). He didn’t go down easily:
five crossbow bolts protrude from his
chest, and his body shows other
wounds as well.
A plain gold band encircles one of
his fingers.
The ring is a ring of shooting stars, but
all of its charges have been expended.
(Enterprising PCs might be able to get it
recharged, however.)
Hiding in a corner of the ceiling (where
it has constructed an elaborate web) is
the captain’s pet, a large spider (AC 8;
MV6, Wb 15; HD 1+1; hp7; #AT 1; Dmg
1; S A poison; AL N; THACO 19).
If the PCs decide to examine the dead
mind flayer. read the following:
There seems to be something in the
creature’s beak. A coin of some
kind. . .
The coin is a copper piece of an unu-
sual octagonal design, unlike any other
currency the PCs have seen before.
2. Captain’s Chartnreasure Room.
The captain’s personal charts remain
in their racks. A large chest stands open
and empty.
room. A rat! Isn’t there anywhere
those creatures can’t be found?
The room is home to three normal rats
(AC 7; MV 15; HD 114; hp 1, 1,2;#AT 1;
Dmg 1; S A 5% chance of serious dis-
ease; AL N(E); THACO 20). They will fight
only if cornered and threatened.
3. Crew Quarters.
The bulkheads are lined with sleep-
ing racks-wooden structures to pre-
vent levitating illithids from drifting
about while they’re asleep. Huddled in
the bottom of one rack is a mind
flayer with a slit throat (killed while
asleep?).
4. Galley.
The illithids used this room for stor-
age. (Their food supply was down in the
slave pens, after all.) The room is full o f .
ropes, belaying pins, spikes, etc.-all the
bricabrac necessary for running and
maintaining a ship.
5. Cargo Bay.
at one time in the past, this ship was
carrying some heavy cargo. But now
the large area looks empty.
The area is home to a colony of 10 nor-
malrats(AC7;MV15;HD1/4;hpl, 1.1,
1,2,2,2, 2, 2,2;#AT 1; Dmg 1; S A 5 %
chance of serious disease; A L N(E);
THACO 20),which will stay well out of
the way of the adventurers if given half a
chance.
Slave Deck
The enemy that attacked the Nautiloid
made sure that every last illithid aboard
was killed, but-for whatever reason-
made no effort to release the human
slaves who were locked up below deck.
The imprisoned slaves soon died of thirst
and hunger, raging in anger and hatred at
both the illithids who had captured them
and the attackers who had left them to
perish. In a number of cases, so great was
this hatred and anger that the prisoners’
spirits haven’t “passed on,” but remain
behind as various kinds of undead to
haunt the ship on which they died.
 Each turn that the PCs spend on the
slave deck, roll ld6 and consult the fol-
lowing encounter table:
Die Roll Encounter
- the undead can be laid to rest without
1 combat. If the PCs can identify the at-
2 -
3 1 wraith
4 1 wraith
5 1 spectre
6 1 ghost
There is only one of each type of un-
dead. If it is defeated, it will not be en-
countered again.
Wraith: AC 4; MV 12, FI 24 (B); HD
5+3; hp 13; #AT 1; Dmg 1-6; S A energy
drain; SD hit only by silver or + 1 or bet-
ter magical weapons; AL LE; THACO 15.
Spectre: AC 2; MV 15, FI 30 (B); HD
7 +3; hp 33; #AT 1; Dmg 1-8 S A energy
drain; SD + 1 or better weapon to hit; AL
L E THACO 13.
Ghost: AC 0 or 8; MV 9; HD 10; hp 32;
#AT 1; Dmg age 10-40years; S A special;
AL L E THACO 11.
Until the PCs enter the slave deck, the
undead have not wandered elsewhere in
the ship. Once the PCs have entered this
deck, however, the undead are free to
pursue them throughout the vessel.
There is one act by which all three of
tackers who left them to die, and then
bring these attackers to justice or other-
wise wreak vengeance on them, the un-
dead will simply fade away.
1, 2 and 3. Staterooms.
These rooms are untouched (possibly
implying that the attackers never came
down this far). All three rooms were obvi-
ously occupied by illithids. There are
sleeping racks on the bulkheads, has-
socks and carpets on the deck, and per-
sonal effects left lying around (nothing of
value, however).
4. Passageway.
Four rats are prowling the passageway
(AC7:MV 15;HD 1/4;hp1,2,2,2;#ATl;
Dma 1; S A 5 % chance of serious dis-
ease; AL N(E);THACO 20), and will stay
well away from the PCs if given a chance.
5. Stateroom.
The furnishings here are a little more
opulent than those elsewhere (the pas-
senger in this room was considerably
more important). Partially concealed un-
der a pile of carpets and blankets is a
small locked chest. The lock is protected
by a poison needle trap. (In case the PCs
decide to search, none of the dead il-
lithids has a key on its person.)
The chest contains papers (in illithid)
that identify the bearer as ambassador
plenipotentiary for the mind flayer race
when dealing with neogi interests. There
is also an elaborate golden medal (175
gp value) and a sash composed of small
silver scales (100 gp value).
Another large spider (AC 8; MV 6, Wb
15; HD 1 +1; hp5; #AT 1;Dmg 1;SApoi-
son; AL N; THACO 19) has constructed
its web near the door.
6. Crew Quarters.
Like room 3 on the cargo deck, the
bulkheads are lined with sleeping racks.
There is nothing else of value present.
7 . Slave Quarters.
Each cell contains one or two human
corpses. There are marks on the inside of
each door showing that the occupants
tried everything to break out before they
died.
The three cells on the starboard side of
the vessel (next to room 8) contained
prisoners who were more powerful, one
to a cell. The doors are reinforced, indi-
cating that the illithids were taking extra
precautions against their escape. These
three prisoners have become the undead
prowling the slave deck.
Unless the particular undead has al-
ready been encountered and defeated
elsewhere, a s soon as a PC opens the
door to one of these cells, the undead will
manifest itself inside the cell and attack.
The aftmost of the three cabins is home
to the ghost; the next is home to the
spectre; the most for’ard of the three is
home to the wraith.
8 and 9.Guard Post.
Both rooms are empty of life. There
are a couple of hassocks thrown around
the floors. Hanging from hooks on the
bulkhead are sets of manacles (three sets
in room 8, two sets in room 9) and keys
for them. There is also a scourge hang-
ing from a hook in room 8.
10. Jettison and Storage.
The medium jettison is undamaged,
but its supply of ammunition is totally
expended.
Concluding the Adventure
Unless the PCs destroy them or unin-
tentionally give them passage off the
abandoned ship, the undead will haunt
the Nautiloid forever . . . at least, until
another ship blunders unwittingly by. If
they can, the undead will take over an-
other ship and use it to pursue their
vengeance. (Note that the undead know
no more than the PCs about exactly who
attacked the Nautiloid.)
When they return to civilization, the
PCs will probably try to identify the coin
they’ve found. Any sage or collector in-
terested in coins can tell them that it is a
coin from a civilization that bloomed and
fell centuries ago on a rock among the
Tears of Selune in Realmspace. Only cer-
tain people-high-ranking law enforce-
ment officials, naval officers, etc.-can
tell the PCs its true significance, how-
ever. (Jasson, the member of the Pro-
gressive Order of Thought from “Letters
of Marque” would be able to tell them.) If
the PCs discuss the coin with a suitable
contact, read the following:
Your contact shoots you a hard,
level look, and says, “Where did you
find thiscoin? No, no, doesn’t matter.”
H e sits back and closes his eyes. “Few
people know what I’m about to tell
you now, and I’d appreciate it if you’d
keep it to yourself. N o use in spread-
ing fear, you know.” H e sighs. “Have
you heard of Cain? Cain the pirate?
Well, Cain has a second career, one
sometimes even more lucrative than
piracy. Cain is an assassin, and a very
good one at that. His arrogance is be-
yond belief, but there is reason for it.
That coin-an ‘octon,’ it’s called-is
Cain’s calling card. Don’t ask me why
he chose it. But he always leaves it be-
hind at the scene of one of his assassi-
nations. The fact that you found it
tells me that you stumbled across
one-or more-of his victims.”
If the PCs dig around a little more,
they’ll hear rumors that a large and pow-
erful mind flayer faction was cutting a
trade deal with certain neogi interests.
The mind flayer’s chief negotiator, an
ambassador plenipotentiary, was being
conveyed in the vessel Void Reaper to
meet with neogi representatives. Certain
human groups didn’t want this deal to
reach fruition, and it’s an open secret
that a contract was put out on the illithid
ambassador. It certainly seems now that
Cain had taken up the contract and dis-
charged it admirably.
Note to the DM: The PCs might now
have a reason, other than financial, to go
after Cain the pirate. It is probably advis-
able to keep them from confronting him
until you decide to run the last adventure
in this book, “Cain.”
PCs with a cunning twist might de-
velop their own adventures based around
the ambassador’s identification found in
room 5 of the slave deck. (Perhaps they
can claim to have made the hit them-
selves, for example.)
Sojourn Among the
Stars
Setting: The Phlogiston
Party: 2-6 characters, levels 6-10
Ship: Any
Setups
The PCs have heard tales of a small,
abandoned ship drifting in the phlogis-
ton. They decide, or are asked, to investi-
gate.
The PCs are travelling in the Flow
and stumble upon a n inert ship (Le., the
DM can drop this adventure in at any
time).
It’s hard to pick out objects in the
Flow against that background of cha-
otic, ever-shifting colors. You strain
your eyes. . .
And there it is, just where your
lookout spotted it. Small ship. Drag-
onfly hull, but modified here and
there. (Portholes along the cargo
hold, for instance.) It’s just drifting in
the flow, seemingly inert.
No, wait a moment. It’s hard to be
sure against the chaos of the phlogis-
ton, but isn’t there a dim, flickering
light showing through those port-
holes?
The Dragonfly is drifting along with
the currents in the Flow, 4 hexes away
from the PCs’ vessel.
Terigamar
The Dragonfly has had several modifi-
cations in addition to the portholes men-
tioned earlier. The cargo hatches in the
upper deck have been sealed, and the
catapult has been removed. The rigging
has also been simplified, making it possi-
ble for one creature-in addition to the
helmsman, of course-to handle the
ship. (With this minimum crew, its Ma-
neuverability Class drops to E.)
The vessel is the home and laboratory
of a human wizard by the name of Teriga-
mar. Prevented by constant interruptions
from making the kind of progress he
wanted in his research, he fitted out this
ship as a flying workshop and took to the
phlogiston. H e made landfall only when
he needed more supplies or had to re-
charge his air envelope. His last such
visit was perhaps 75 years ago, but Teri-
gamar hasn’t noticed the passing of
time, being engrossed in his research.
Terigamar was a n old man when he
first took to space. In the intervening per-
iod, he died of old age . . . but didn’t no-
tice. So great was his attention to his
work that physical death didn’t even
break his concentration. Unbeknownst
RR
to himself, Terigamar has made the tran-
sition from living wizard to undead lich.
(He did notice-if only peripherally-
that his familiar, Hisst, was acting
strangely toward him for a time, but
things soon got back to normal.) Teriga-
mar is incredibly absent-minded about
everything but his work. He eats when
he’s hungry, and makes landfall when the
air gets foul. It hasn’t registered that it’s
been some decades since either has hap-
pened.
Hisst used to remind Terigamar when
they needed air, but after Terigamar died,
Hisst’s air requirements were so small
that they have not needed fresh air in
decades.
If it is brought to his attention that he’s
dead, his first reaction will be mild sad-
ness, but his next will be gladness: now
he has eternity before him to continue
his research. Whether he knows of his
own death or not, he will fight with all his
considerable powers against any attempt
to end his existence.
Terigamar has been conducting re-
search on the very nature of space itself.
Thus many of his spells-including one
of his own creation, summon cosmic
storm-are closely tied to the powers of
space. He is not jealous of other wizards
and will gladly share the results of his re-
search. When it comes to exchanging or
passing on spells, however, he will ex-
pect fair payment. In his many decades
of research, he has never been fortunate
enough to learn one spell that he needs:
time stop. If a PC wizard can teach him
the spell. or acquire it on a scroll, he will
reciprocate with any two ninth-level
spells, plus a magic item of some small
power (DM’s choice from his hoard).
Terigamar (lich): AC 0; MV 6; HD 18;
hp 71; #AT 1; Dmg 1-10 or by spell;
spells: cantrip, comprehend languages,
defect magic, identify, unseen servant;
continual light, inuisibility, know align-
ment, levitate, wizard lock; blink, clairvoy-
ance, illusionary script, Leomund’s tiny
hut, slow; confusion, dimension door,
Euard’s black tentacles, Leomund’ssecure
shelter, magic mirror; Bigby ’s interposing
hand, distance distortion, feeblemind,
seeming, telekinesis; Bigby’s forceful
hand, chain lightning, repulsion; duo-
dimension, reuerse grauity, shadow walk;
demand, symbol; Bigby’s crushing hand;
SA paralysis; SD + 1 or better magical
weapon to hit; AL CN; THACO 10.Teriga-
mar looks like a n inadequately-
preserved corpse (if there were any
mirrors around the ship-and there
aren’t, since Terigamar is far from vain-
his appearance might give the lich some
clue as to his true nature).
Hisst (pseudodragon): AC 2; MV 6, FI
24 (B); HD 2; hp 6; #AT 1; Dmg 1-3 + spe-
cial; SA poison sting; SD chameleon
power; AL N(G);THACO 19. Hisst is a t y p
ical pseudodragon, somewhat demand-
ing of his master’s attention, but quite
devoted. Hisst is very suspicious of visi-
tors, even if they appear friendly, and will
use his chameleon powers to observe
without being observed. If he sees any-
thing vaguely suspicious or threatening,
he immediately reports to Terigamar.
Dorkin (homonculous): AC 6; MV 6, FI
18 (B); HD 2; hp 3; #AT 1; Dmg 1-3;SA
bite causes sleep; AL N; THACO 16.
Many years ago, Terigamar created
Dorkin the homonculousto assist him in
his research(Hisst wanted to help, but his
lack of real hands limited his effective-
ness). Normally, a homonculous has a
personality similar to its creator. In the
case of Dorkin, something went slightly
wrong. The homonculous is an abject
coward: it doesn’t like sharp objects, it
doesn’t like flames, and it’s terrified to
the point of incontinence of coming too
near anything magical. Thus it’s abso-
lutely useless as a sorcerer’s apprentice.
Rather than being angry at this failure,
Terigamar’s heart was touched by the lit-
tle creature. Now he dotes on the small
beast (at first Hisst was jealous, but now
he, too, feels affection for the cowardly
creature). When the PCs enter the ship,
Dorkin will immediately hide, coming
out only when Terigamar has convinced
him it’s safe. . .and then only cautiously.
The homonculous has a morale of 4.
Meeting the Wizard
Terigamar will feel his ship move if
anybody boards her. He will break off
whatever research he’s involved in-
somewhat peevishly-and go to investi-
gate. His appearance and his irritated
manner-”Well? What in Hades do you
want?”-might prompt the PCs to ill-
considered action. If attacked, Terigamar
will defend himself to the best of his (con-
siderable) abilities against the “pirates of
the Flow” who are obviously trying to
capture his ship. (Thus PCs who leap into
combat without scoping out the situa-
tion first will probably find they’ve made
a fatal mistake.)
Wizard’s Vessel
Upper Deck
The entire upper deck is covered with
a patina of space dust, and looks as
though nobody’s set foot on it in years.
(True; Terigamar rately leaves his lab.)
Here and there the deck is scorched.
(These marks were made by a couple of
Terigamar’s experiments that went
slightly wrong.) The hatch leading to the
companionway to the lower deck is stiff,
but not locked.
Lower Deck
The entire lower deck is well-lit. The
wizard has cast continual light on objects
throughout the vessel: here a lamp
bracket, there a portion of the overhead.
1. Bridge.
The ship’s minor helm-a plain, unor-
namented chair built from heavy, dark
wood-is mounted for’ard of the main-
mast, directly between the ship’s “eyes.”
Set in the bow is the chart table. The
charts and navigational instruments are
covered with dust (Terigamar has had no
need of them for 75 years).
2. Captain’s Cabin.
This is where Terigamar slept, back in
those days when he needed to sleep.
There is a comfortable bed (unmade),
and a plush armchair. The bulkheads are
lined with bookshelves full of books and
scrolls in a dozen languages. Most deal
with magic and the history of magic, al-
though some are less scholarly, putting
forward some really off-the-wall theories
concerning space and time. Although
the lich doesn’t need to sleep, Hisst and
Dorkin do, and they put the bed to good
use. Dorkin hides in the bed until as-
sured of his safety.
3. Crew Cabin.
Terigamar has converted this cabin
into a storeroom and “overflow” library.
The bulkheads are lined with shelves and
cupboards, filled to bursting with spell
components and various oddities (a kind
of ‘‘lodestone’’ that doesn’t attract iron
but attracts certain other rare metals: a
small sliver of metal floating in the air an
inch above a dish of mercury; a candle
whose flame burns bright white and
never flickers; a stiletto balanced on its
point on the table, rotating about its axis
slowly and never falling over; and a disk
of metal half an inch across and a tenth
of that thick that turns itself over every
several seconds).
4. Cargo Hold.
The hold has been refitted to make a
comfortable, well laid-out laboratory.
Three small portholes down each side
give a view of the phlogiston. There are
tables and workbenches, all covered with
unfinished experiments of one kind or
another. Here a foul-smelling liquid bub-
bles over an alcohol burner; there a rock
glows with a cold white light while a
strange device next to it ticks sporadi-
cally. Most of these experiments are in-
comprehensible to anyone except
Terigamar. Should the PCs befriend him,
he will proudly give them detailed (inter-
minable and unintelligible) explanations
of what he’s attempting to do and what
he’s learned.
In addition to his experiments, Teriga-
mar keeps his spell book and certain in-
teresting magical items in this room. No
details of items are given; DMs can give
Terigamar whatever items they see fit.
The spell book contains all spells of
levels 1-3. For higher levels, it contains
the spells he currently has memorized,
plus the following: charm monster, detect
scrying, enchanted weapon, extension I,
illusionary wall, Rary’s mnemonic en-
hancer, uacancy; chaos, contact other
plane, distance distortion, fake uision,
Leomund’ssecret chest, sending, teleport,
wall of force; contingency, inuisible
stalker, true seeing; forcecage, teleport
without error; astral spell, summon cos-
mic storm. This last spell was created by
Terigamar, and has the following charac-
teristics:
when) else.
It can only be cast in wildspace, more
than 100 miles from the nearest planet-
sized object. The storm appears in 1-10
turns, at a distance of 1-20 hexes from
the spellcaster’s current position, in a
random direction. Once it has been sum-
moned, the storm cannot be controlled
by the caster or by anyone else. Each
turn, the storm moves 1-6hexes in a ran-
dom direction. At the beginning of each
turn, before they make their own move-
ment, all ships within 20 hexes of the
storm are moved 4 hexes directly toward
it. This movement does not change the
ships’ headings. Any ship that manages
to move more than 20 hexes away from
the storm is free of its influence. Any
ship that enters the same hex as the
storm has been engulfed by it. The cos-
mic storm is a gateway to other parts of
the space-time continuum: any ship ab-
sorbed by the storm can be deposited
anywhere in the universe. The storm re-
mains in existence until the distance be-
tween it and the spellcaster exceeds 20
hexes, or until the spellcaster is ab-
sorbed by the storm.
The material components for the spell
are a piece of lodestone and a piece of
mithril, both of which are consumed in
the casting.
Concluding the Adventure
If the PCs can control their impulse to
get into a scrap with Terigamar, the lich
can prove a great resource for them. He
can also be a convenient tool for the DM
with which to lead the PCs into other ad-
ventures. For example, what if Terigamar
needs something special for his
research-the brain of a radiant dragon,
for instance-and wants the PCs to ac-
quire it for him? He certainly has enough
clout to add weight to such a request. . .
particularly if he backs it with a demand
spell.
Should the PCs ever seem to be abus-
ing Terigamar’s hospitality, the DM can
simply have the lich move his ship to an-
other locale. All meetings between the
lich and the PCs should be at the lichs
whim, not that of the players.

Summon Cosmic Storm

(Evocation) Wizard 9th level
Range: Special
Components: V, S, M
Duration: Special
Casting Time: 9
Area of Effect: Special
Saving Throw: None
This spell calls into existence that
strange phenomenon known as the “cos-
mic storm.” Some sages theorize that the
cosmic strom is actually one end of a
“wormhole” in space, and anything
sucked in at one end is ejected through
the other somewhere (or even some- “1 U
The Brain Trade
Setting: Wildspace
Party: 4-6 characters, levels 6-8
Ship: Any of 25-50 tonnage
Setups
The PCs have heard rumors that pi-
rates seem to be very active in a certain
area of space. (If they dig a little deeper,
however, they’ll hear something a little
strange about these rumors: sometimes
items of value have been left behind, and
never has a body been found aboard one
of the plundered vessels.) The rumors
hint that the culprit might be one of their
bounty pirates.
The PCs are asked or hired to find
out what’s happened to a certain ship
that’s some days overdue.
The PCs are travelling in wildspace
when, without warning, their ship drops
to tactical speed.
Interesting area of space, you tell
yourself, not what you’d consider
prime real estate.
Around your vessel are great tum-
bling mountains of rock, ranging in
size from smaller than a house to
larger than some islands you’ve seen.
Your charts showed this asteroid
field-and also told you that it was too
large to be easily skirted-but it didn’t
give you an idea of what it would be
like to be inside it. Most asteroid fields
or belts are sparse things: total amount
of matter about equal to a planet, but
spread through a torus of space with a
volume millions of times that of a
world. Frequently you wouldn’t even
know you were in an asteroid field un-
less the chart told you so.
Not in this case. Everywhere you
look, there’s a chunk of rock large
enough to hole your ship. If those
sages are right who believe that aste-
roid belts are the remnants of a planet
that disintegrated, this must have
been one monster of a planet.
With all this mass about you, you’re
limited to tactical speed. What a great
place for an ambush! Hide your ship
behind one of those flying mountains
until your prey blunders by, then close
and destroy. Pirates would love this
place. . .
“Ship port astern!” the lookout
calls.
You look in the prescribed direc-
tion. A ship is pulling out from behind
a mountain-sized chunk of rock. As
you watch, it accelerates toward you.
Couldn’t you be wrong for
once. . . 2
The ship is 10 hexes away, 30° to port
and astern, level with your gravity plane.
It is on an interception course, with SR 4.
Procurers
It is well known that mind flayers feed
on the brains of other creatures. It is also
known that they much prefer to let oth-
ers do the dirty work for them. Thus, a
rather unpleasant trade arrangement has
grown up between the mind flayers and
the neogi. Rapacious and nasty, certain
neogi are quite willing to capture slaves
and hand them over to the mind flayers
as food. In return, the mind flayers act as
intermediaries between the “small mas-
ters” and the Arcane (who won’t deal di-
rectly with the neogi). All three races
benefit: the mind flayers get brains to
eat, the neogi get access to Arcane tech-
nology, and the Arcane get to sell more
product without soiling their (somewhat
situational) ethics.
A certain neogi, Sisk Hal, has cut such
a deal with the mind flayers. He and the
rest of the Sisk tribe-accompanied by a
mind flayer whose name (or,more prop
erly, his telepathic “label”) translates to
“Skull Toucher” in the common
tongue-have been preying on shipping
in this region of space using their Mind-
spider. Their usual tactic is to lurk
among the asteroids, then use the ship’s
speed to catch, ram and grapple the tar-
get ship. Then umber hulks and other
slaves swarm aboard. All efforts are
made to capture the crew alive: if that’s
not possible, then the corpses are eaten
by the neogi and the umber hulks. Pris-
oners are kept alive until the Mindspi-
der’s next rendezvous with Skull
Toucher’s Nautiloid, when they are
handed over to the mind flayers. If
there’s anything of value aboard the tar-
get ship that’s easy to carry off, the neogi
take it as part of their “finder’s fee.” If it’s
difficult to move (like a spelljamming
helm), or of no use to a neogi (elven
boots, for example), they leave it behind.
Unfortunately for the PCs, they have
stumbled into Sisk Hal’s “hunting
ground.”
Mindspider
Sisk Hal’s ship is christened Collector
(in the neogi tongue, of course). It
matches the statistics for a Mindspider
given in the SPELWAMMER“ boxed set,
with a single modification: a small gun-
nery platform has been mounted directly
above the bridge (area 1 on the primary
deck), on which is mounted a forward-
firing light ballista (crew 1). Since this is
very close to the grappling ram (in fact,
the ballista fires between two “legs” of
the ram), it’s rather a precarious posi-
tion. When the ship rams, there is a 60%
chance that the gunner will be thrown
overboard by the impact (not important
to the neogi, somewhat more so to the
gunner). The Mindspider has SR 4.
Sisk Hal is owner and undisputed mas-
ter of the ship. There are four other neogi
aboard, all from the same brood: Sisk Ar,
Sisk Ceth, Sisk Jor and Sisk Urd. Each
neogi has a single umber hulk slave.
Skull Toucher the mind flayer has come
on board alone. There are also 10
charmed slaves, who operate the weap-
ons (all humans). Finally there are the
captives: two elven fighters, an elven
mage, and the “power source” inside the
lifejammer.
Neogi (x5): AC 3: MV 6; HD 5; hp 28,
26, 24, 23, 19; #AT 3; Dmg 1-3/1-3/1-6;
S A slowing poison; AL L E THACO 15.
(Sisk Hal is the neogi with 28 hp.) Like all
neogi, the Sisk tribe will do whatever it
takes to preserve their lives. They will ex-
plain about the deal with Skull Toucher,
trying to put all the blame on him (“We
were just following orders”), and will tell
the PCs the exact location of Skull
Toucher’s Nautiloid, should the PCs wish
to go and destroy it (they might even tell
the truth). If defeated or captured, the
neogi will always be looking for the most
efficient way of turning the tables.
Around Sisk Hal’s neck is as set of keys.
These open the shackles in area 2 of the
secondary deck.
Umberhulk(x5):ACZ;MV6: HD8+8;
hp43,45,47,50,52: #AT3;Dmg3-12/3-
12/1-10:SA confusion; AL C E THACO
11. The umber hulks are loyal to their
neogi masters, and will fight to the death
to protect them.
Skull Toucher (mind flayer): AC 5; MV
12; HD 8+4: hp 38; #AT 4; Dmg special;
SA mind blast: SD 90% magic resist-
ance; AL LE; THACO 11.The mind flayer
can use the following powers, one per
round, as a 7th level mage: suggestion,
charm monster/person, leuitate, as-
tral projection, and plane shift. The mind
flayer hides its natural arrogance in the
presence of the neogi (it doesn’t pay to
alienate a useful supplier, even if that
supplier is of an inferior race), but will
certainly not do so when it comes to PCs.
Perhaps surprisingly, Skull Toucher will
surrender if the only alternative is death.
(Even though the thought of surrender-
ing to lesser creatures is distasteful,
more unbearable is the thought that-if
the creature should die now-it’s brain
will never become part of its group’s
elder-brain.) It will certainly take advan-
tage of any opportunity for escape, how-
ever.
Charmed human slaves (x10): AC 8;
MV 12; F1; hp 2 , 3 , 3 , 4 , 6 , 6 , 6 , 8 , 9 , 10;
#AT 1; Dmg by weapon; AL N; THACO
20. The slaves once formed the crew of a
ship unlucky enough to cross Sisk Hal’s
path. They all wear leather armor and
carry short swords (Dmg 1-6) and dag-
gers (Dmg 1-4). In their charmed state,
they are loyal to the neogi, who they be-
lieve to be their protectors against “pi-
rates” like the PCs; their morale is
fanatical (18).
Tactics
Once the Mindspider has rammed and
grappled, the charmed crew, accompa-
nied by three of the umber hulks, will
board and try to take as many prisoners
as possible. Sisk Hal will await the out-
come in his quarters (primary deck area
4), accompanied by his umber hulk. The
other neogi will wait in area 3, guarded
by the other umber hulk. Skull Toucher
will watch the proceedings from the
bridge; if it appears that the mind flayer
can affect the outcome, it will climb from
the bridge to the ballista platform and
use its mind blast or magical abilities
from there. Should the fight go against
the neogi’s slaves, Skull Toucher will re-
turn to the bridge and make a last stand
there.
Primary Deck
1. Bridge and Helm.
In the reddish light coming in
through the Mindspider’s “eyes,”
everything looks wet with blood-an
unpleasant image, but not wholly in-
appropriate. The room is dominated
~
by an ornately-carved wooden box,
similar in shape and size to a large
coffin. Its lid is secured by heavy
latches. Just for’ard of the coffin is a
strangely-shaped low stool, some-
thing designed to accommodate the
neogi form, you assume, and carved
from the same piece of dark wood as
the coffin.
What’s that? A dull thudding noise.
Coming from within the coffin. . . ?
The coffin and stool arrangement is
the Mindspider’s lifejammer helm. The
victim is locked within the coffin, while
the neogi captain “sits” on the stool and
controls the craft.
The lid of the coffin is latched but not
locked. If the PCs open the coffin, read
the following:
You release the second latch. Sud-
denly the coffin lid is slammed open
from within, and a pale figure lunges
The victim inside the lifejammer is an
elven poetlexplorer named Elowynn
Silvermoon. She has felt the lifejammer
draining the life from her body, and has
decided that it is much better to die fight-
ing for her freedom than to perish in this
unholy contraption. Thus, she’s decided
to attack the first neogi or neogi slave
that opens the lifejammer.
Elowynn Silvermoon is totally un-
armed, but she will attack with all her
might until she is killed, incapacitated,
or somehow persuaded that the PCs
aren’t neogi slaves.
Elowynn Silvermoon: AC 10; MV 12;
F71C5; hp 4; #AT 312; Dmg by weapon or
spell; Str 13, Dex 11. Con 16, Int 13, Wis
14, Cha 13; spells: none; AL CG; THACO
14. Elowynn normally has 33 hit points,
but the lifejammer has drained all but 4.
She is unarmed and unarmored. Due to
her contact with the lifejammer, she is
unable to cast spells for 24 hours. Elo-
wynn is a typical elven explorer: she
roams the universe simply because she
burns to learn and see new things, not for
any thought of practicality. She and her
crew-more friends or family now than
employees-have sailed her dragonfly,
the Outward Bound, through more crys-
tal shells than she can remember and
seen enough wonders to (almost) satisfy
an elf‘s curiosity.
2. Chart Room.
Neogi don’t seem to be too good at
housekeeping. Charts are strewn eve-
rywhere, and navigational instru-
ments are scattered across the
maptable, on chart racks and on the
floor.
The charts are all in neogi symbology.
A character with a proficiency in modern
languages or navigation can make a pro-
ficiency roll (with a -4 penalty) to deci-
pher them. Even when deciphered,
there’s nothing of any value or interest
on the charts.
3. Umber Hulk and Neogi Quarters.
The four lesser neogi and one umber
hulk will probably be present. The room
contains nothing but four of the low
hassock-like pillows on which neogi
sleep.
Note that the open hatch to the lower
decks poses a significant threat to peo-
ple fighting in this room. The neogi and
umber hulks know it, too, and will try to
push characters into the shaft (the fall to
the secondary deck inflicts ld6 points of
damage).
4. Sisk Hal’s Quarters.
Sisk Hal and his umber hulk will prob-
ably be present. If they are, the door is se-
cured from the inside. There’s no
keyhole on the outside, so the PCs will
have to break it down.
As master of the ship, Hal’s quarters
are fairly opulent (by neogi standards).
As well as the standard neogi sleeping
hassock and a pallet for his umber hulk,
the floor is covered in a profusion of
rugs, all in bright and clashing colors.
The walls, too, are hung with cloth of gar-
ish hue. Pieces of jewelry hang from
hooks on the walls (neogi can’t wear
human-stylejewelry, but they do like the
way it sparkles and can appreciate its
value): a garnet necklace (350 gp value),
a pair of jade earrings (125 gp each), a di-
amond bracelet (750 gp), a heavy gold
chain bracelet (50 gp). and a platinum ti-
ara studded with moonstones (1,000 gp).
A chest in the far aft of the room contains
sacks of coins: 1,000sp, 250 gp and 30
pp. Hidden among the silver coins is a
dagger + 1 (Hal can’t use it, but figured
he could sell it to someone eventually).

Secondary Deck
1. Jettison Bay.
The ship’s aft-firing medium jettison is
mounted here. Barrels contain the small
rocks and scrap metal with which it’s
loaded.
2. Prisoner Area.
This is where the neogi keep the pris-
oners taken from the last ship they am-
bushed (it was Elowynn Silvermoon’s
Outward Bound). The three captives are
all elves of young to middle age: Darla
Leafsong, Talis Mornstar and Vray Morn-
star. They are shackled hand and foot
(Sisk Hal has the keys). The elves know
the fate in store for them-meals for the
mind flayers-and are extremely grate-
ful to their rescuers.
Darla Leafsong: AC 10;MV 12;W4; hp
9; #AT 1; Dmg by weapon or spell; Str 9,
Dex 12, Con 12, Int 14, Wis 12, Cha 12;
spells: none; AL CG; THACO 19. Darla
used all her spells trying to fight off the
Mindspider’s attack, and has (obviously)
been unable to memorize any more since
her capture.
Talis and Vray Mornstar: AC 10; MV
12; F3; hp 19, 19; #AT 1; Dmg by
weapon; Str 14, Dex 12, Con 13, Int 12,
Wis 10, Cha 12; AL CG; THACO 18. Talis
and Vray are identical twins (very rare
among elves).
All three elves are unarmored. Their
equipment is piled in a corner: two sets
of studded leather armor, two long
swords, three daggers, two short bows
plus 13 arrows, and Darla’s spellbook
(cantrip, detect magic, detect undead,
identify, read magic, detect euil, detect in-
uisibility, ESP).
Weapons Pit
Here are mounted the ship’s two me-
dium catapults, protected by a retract-
able dome. The catapults fire aft,
designed to discourage pursuit. In addi-
tion to the weapons themselves, there
are stockpiles of appropriately-sized
missiles.
Concluding the Adventure
Despite the powerful opponents, a
strong party should be able to defeat the
neogi and allies and take over the ship.
(Of course, plying space in a neogi Mind-
spider is a blatant invitation to any right-
minded race to attack immediately.)
Once the neogi are all killed, the sur-
viving human slaves are freed of their
charm. All are simple sailors and want to
continue with what they do best. Perhaps
the PCs have some positions to fill
aboard their ship. . . ?
Elowynn and the other elves want to
get back about their explorations. They
are grateful to the PCs, of course, and
will assist them in any way possible; un-
fortunately, they have no money. The
elves would like a lift to the nearest elven
outpost, where they can go about raising
the money needed to acquire another
ship. That is, unless the PCs wish to join
them in their epic adventuring. . . ?
Should the PCs escape or be defeated,
Sisk Hal will continue his brain trade with
the mind flayers.
Void Elves
Setting: Wildspace
Party: 4-6 characters; levels 7-9
Ship: Any
Setups
The PCs hear vague rumors that an
elven Armada of rather strange design
has been sighted in a certain region of
space. They are hired by a representative
of the elven Imperial Navy to check it
out. Since the system in the area is some-
what touchy about incursions by elven
task forces, an unofficial survey is more
politically expedient. (This request could
come as a result of the PCs’ involvement
with the Imperial Navy in the adventure
“Fire and Ice.”) On their way to the region
in question, the PCs’ ship suddenly drops
to tactical speed.
The PCs are travelling in wildspace
when, without warning, their ship drops
to tactical speed.
“Unidentified vessels high on star-
board bow!” the lookout cries.
You sigh. You certainly seem to be
running into a lot of “unidentified ves-
sels” lately. You scan the heavens in
the indicated direction and find it: a
Wasp ship painted night black (not a
particularly auspicious sign), about
15O to starboard and loo above your
gravity plane. Its heading seems to be
almost parallel to yours, perhaps a
few degrees to port, and it’s some
1,200yards away. The Wasp is flanked
by three smaller ships-elven Flitters
and a Mosquito by the looks of them.
i
As you watch, the angular-looking
Wasp maneuvers, coming about to an
interception course with your vessel.
Once more you sigh. Here we go
again. . .
Characters with telescopes or likewise
enhanced vision will notice that the Wasp
is modified. The forward station, nor-
mally open, is covered by a canopy, as is
the weapons deck. The weapons deck
canopy has been moved back to give the
heavy ballista a free field of fire.
The Wasp is at a range of 3 hexes. It has
an SR of 5.
The Wasp ship is manned by 10 drow,
under the command of Larth Darkcloud
and helmed by his sister, Selene. Also
aboard are a neogi negotiator, Serta Ulm
and his two umber hulk slaves, plus Serta
Jerro, another neogi “loyal” to Ulm, and
his umber hulk.
Serta Ulm is currently negotiating a
treaty with Larth Darkcloud’s superior,
and this task force was assigned to bring ’
him to a meeting with the drow forces.
For more information, see “DM Notes”
after this adventure.
When the Wasp encounters the PCs’
vessel, Ulm’s immediate reaction is
“more slaves!” and he orders Larth Dark-
cloud to immediately attack them. Larth,
of course, disagrees-he has his duty,
and getting in a scrap with random ad-
venturers isn’t part of it-but it’s hard for
even a drow to argue with two neogi and
three umber hulks. When outright veto
of the neogi’s orders doesn’t work, Larth
tries reason instead: he tries to persuade
Ulm that sometimes business must take
precedence over pleasure. Eventually
his logical arguments convince the
neogi, but not before the Wasp ship has
started its attack run at the PCs’ vessel
and fired one round from its heavy bal-
lista.
The PCs don’t know this, of course. All
they know is that t h e Wasp-
conspicuously without its escort’s
participation-turns t o a n intercept
course and closes with a n S R of 5. When
it is in range, it fires one shot from its
heavy ballista. Regardless of the PCs’
actions in this round, the ship turns
sharply and tries to make its escape. As
soon a s it turns away, the Flitters again
take u p station to escort it, while the
stinger-configuration Mosquito fights a
delaying action against the PCs’ vessel,
hoping to give the Wasp time to make its
getaway.
The Task Force
T h e Flitters a r e both S R 1 , a r e
equipped with minor helms, and have no
armaments a t all. Each is manned by a
3rd-level drow mage.
The Mosquito is S R 3, is equipped with
a major helm, and is armed with a greek
fire projector. Its captainlhelmsman is a
female drow cleric of 6th level, and has
three 2nd level drow warriors operating
the greek fire projector (max. of 3 shots).
The Mosquito’s open deck is covered
with a translucent crystal dome.
Apart from the above details, all four
vessels in the task force match the statis-
tics given in the Lorebook of the Void.
Flitter captains (drow) (x2): AC 5; MV
12; W3; hp 8 , 9 ; #AT 1; Dmg by weapon;
spells: none (see below); AL CE; THACO
19. They wear chain mail, and are armed
with daggers (Dmg 1-4).
Mosquito helmsman (drow): AC 5; MV
15; C6; hp 22; #AT 1; Dmg by weapon;
spells: none (see below); AL C E THACO
15. She wears chain mail, and is armed
with a footman’s mace (Dmg 2-7).
Mosquito crew (drow) (x3): AC 5; MV
12; F2; hp 11. 13, 14; #AT 1; Dmg by
weapon; AL CE; THACO 19. They wear
chain mail, and are armed with long
swords (Dmg 1-8).
All drow have the same innate magical
abilities, usable once per day: dancing
lights, faerie fire, and darkness. In addi-
tion, the Mosquito helmsman has the fol-
lowing abilities, usable once per day:
clairuoyance, detect lie, detect magic, dis-
pel magic, know alignment, leuitate and
suggestion. The Flitter captains and Mos-
quito helmsman can use no normal
spells because they have used spell-
jammer helms in the last 12 hours. This
does not affect their innate drow abili-
ties, however.
Note: Drow armor loses its effective-
ness when exposed to direct sunlight,
therefore limiting any crewmen to nor-
mal armor while on deck or at the weap-
ons. The drow armor and weapons are
kept for use on board the Monarch ar-
mada (see “Monarch Armada” for more
information). The drow armor is rarely
used except by the security forces within
the Monarch; most drow simply store
their special armor in personal lockers.
The drow in the lesser ships will fight
to the death to defend the Wasp ship.
(The only way the Flitters can influence
the outcome is to draw fire, or to ram the
PCs’ vessel.) There is nothing of value
aboard these lesser vessels.
The Wasp
Once it’s made its abortive attack, the
Wasp will do its best to make its escape.
If escape is obviously impossible, it will
turn and fight. (Consider the crew of the
Wasp to have a morale of 18 when deter-
mining the chances of surrender, etc.)
Larth Darkcloud (drow): AC 3: MV 12;
F7iW5; hp 60; #AT 312; Dmg by weapon
(longsword(1-8),drowcrossbow(1-3))or
spell; Str 13, Dex 13. Con 1I , Int 15, Wis
12, Cha 10; spells: chill touch (&?),magic
missile (x2);web, stinking cloud; vampiric
touch; AL CE; THACO 13. Larth wears
chain mail +2 and he is armed with a
long sword and a drow hand crossbow (5
bolts with sleep poison).
Selene Darkcloud (drow): AC 3; MV
15; C10: hp 37; #AT 1; Dmg by weapon
(mace (2-7)); Str 13, Dex 11, Con 12, Int
10, Wis 14, Cha 10; spells: none; AL C E
THACO 14. Selene wears chain mail +2
and is armed with a horseman’s mace.
Since she has used a helm in the last 12
hours, she can cast no normal spells.
This does not affect her innate drow abili-
ties, however.
Both Larth and Selene have the follow-
ing innate abilities, usable once per day:
dancing lights, faerie fire, darkness, clair.
uoyance, detect lie, detect magic, dispel
magic, know alignment, leuitate and s u g
-
aestion.
Drow crew (x10): AC 5; MV 12; F2;hp
3, 5, 5, 5, 8, 11, 11, 15, 15, 16; #AT 1;
Dmn by weapon; AL CE; THACO 19. The
crewwear chain armor, and all wield long
swords (Dmg 1-8). Five are also equipped
with drow hand crossbows. All crew-
members have the same innate magical
abilities, usable once per day: dancing
lights, faerie fire, and darkness. Four of
the drow are busy manning the heavy
ballista.
Neogi (Serta Ulm, Serta Jerro): AC 3;
MV 6; HD 5; hp 3 2 (Ulm), 25 (Jerro); #AT
3; Dmg 1-311-311-6:SA slowing poison;
AL LE; THACO 16. Once battle is joined,
neither neogi wish to be personally in-
volved. Instead, they shelter in t h e
Wasp’s cargo bay (area 4), depending on
the drow and their umber hulks to defend
them.
Umber hulk(x3): AC 2; MV 6; HD 8 +8;
hp 43, 47, 50; #AT 3; Dmg 3-12/3-1211.
10; SA confusion: AL C E THACO 11.
The umber hulks are loyal to their neogi
masters, and will fight to the death to
protect them.
Aboard Ship
If the Wasp ship is forced into combat,
six of the drow crew will fight on-deck,
led by Larth Darkcloud; the remainder
man the ballista. Selene will remain a t
the helm, trying to maneuver the ship
out of range, until someone enters the
bridge. Then she will use her innate abili-
ties to try and escape, or fight. If things
look bad, the neogi will send two of their
umber hulks up on deck to help out, but
will always keep one (the largest) a s their
personal bodyguard.
Refer to the plans of the modified
Wasp on the four-color map sheet. All ar-
eas in the following descriptions corres-
pond to the numbered areas on the
plans.
Foredeck
1. Bridge.
If there remains a chance that the
Wasp can make an escape, Selene Dark-
cloud will remain seated at the ship’s ma-
jor helm; otherwise, she will have taken
up a defensive position somewhere in
this area (preferably where she can am-
bush anyone who’s coming in). Depend-
ing on the tactical situation, she might
be hiding in the forward station on the
main deck.
In addition to the helm, the bridge con.
tains a maptable covered with charts in
drow language and symbology. A char-
acter with a proficiency in modern lan-
guages or navigation can make a
proficiency roll at a penalty of -2 to de-
cipher them. These charts show the loca-
 UdE4E A
tion of both Serta Ulm’s fleet and Teela
Darkclouds Monarch Armada.
Underneath the maptable is a locked
chest. This contains Larth Darkclouds
spellbook and Selene’s holy symbol (a
spider cast from adamantine: 1,000 gp
value). There are also two hammocks
folded up next to the chest; Larth and Se-
lene sleep in respective corners of the
bridge.
Main Deck
1. Forward Station.
In most Wasp ships, this area is open to
space: on this vessel, it is covered with a
smoke-colored crystal dome. There is
nothing of value or interest present (un-
less Selene Darkcloud is hiding here).
2. Crew Quarters.
There are sleeping stations (pallets or
hammocks) for the ten crewmen. Since
this is a short journey, none of the crew-
members has brought any valuables or
personal effects on board.
3. Galley.
A smell catches in your nostrils and
makes your eyes water and your
throat constrict. It takes you a mo-
ment to realize that this is just the
aroma of drow cooking . . .
Apart from a rather unspeakable cas-
serole bubbling on the stove, there’s
nothing here of interest.
4. Cargo Bay.
As the most central area of the ship,
this is where Serta Ulm and Jerro have
chosen to hide. Depending on the tacti-
cal situation, they might have one or all
three of their umber hulks with them as
personal guards.
If combat is joined in this area, the mo-
rale for both neogi is 12.Should they sur-
render, they are likely to trade details on
Teela Darkcloud’s plans and her loca-
tion, for their lives. (Of course, being
neogi, they’ll probably lie, and will cer-
tainly look for opportunities to slay or
enslave the PCs.)
5. Additional Cargo Bay.
Unless some drow from the weapons
deck have made a fighting withdrawal to
this area, the room is empty.
Concluding the Adventure
Should the Wasp ship escape, it will
immediately head for the drow Armada.
Any surviving PCs may decide to pursue
it. If the PCs can decipher the drow’s
charts, or if they’ve managed to some-
how extract the truth from the neogi or
from captured drow, they’ll know the lo-
cation of Teela Darkcloud’sArmada. (Un-
less the PCs are quick in finding it, Teela
will realize that something has happened
to her task force, especially if one of the
Flitters somehow escaped and returned
to tell her, and she will quickly move on.)
They’ll also know that the drow are cut-
ting some kind of deal with the neogi, al-
though they might not know the exact
details.
This kind of information would be of
great interest to the Council of Admirals
of the elven Imperial Navy, and they’d
possibly reward anyone (quite hand-
somely, too!) who brought it to their
attention-as long as some proof was
provided.
Of course, wouldn’t it be much more
heroic for the PCs to try to do something
about Teela Darkcloud themselves. . . 3
DM NOTES:
Drow in Space
Contrary to conventional wisdom, the
drow do have a presence in space-not
extensive (yet), but enough to cause con-
cern. They have at least two Armadas
which they have heavily modified, and
numerous other vessels. Many are of el-
ven design: ships whose crews were slain
or were abandoned during the Unhuman
Wars, later found and refitted by the
drow. But the drow fleet also includes
vessels of other configurations, mainly
acquired through ongoing space piracy.
The phrase “drow fleet” is actually a
misnomer, carrying the connotation of a
centrally organized endeavor. Instead,
the drow presence in space consists of a
number of “nations”-groups of varying
sizes, based around a single matriarchal
clan. Each space-going nation typically
has its own goals and agenda. Some-
times these align, but more often they
are totally independent from (even ac-
tively inimical to) the efforts of other
drow nations. Most nations have fairly
limited goals: to set up an isolated out-
post in a small crystal sphere, for exam-
ple, commanded by the drow but with all
the manual labor performed by slave
races: or to remain forever in space,
plundering the shipping lanes for their
requirements while living comfortably
aboard a stolen or drow-designed Ar-
mada.
Space-faring drow have a philosophy
quite different from that of their ground-
ling brethren. Rather than seeing them-
selves as a hunted race that must survive
and prosper through stealth, and then
only against overwhelming odds, space
drow-or “void elves” as they call
themselves-believe that they have a
destiny toward which they are inexorably
moving. Each nation has a different view
of this destiny.
The Nation of
Eternal Twilight
One drow nation has somewhat more
extensive and aggressive plans than the
others. This group, the “Nation of Eter-
nal Twilight,” has ambitions that extend
beyond the boundaries of a single crystal .
shell. What they see as their destiny is to
be the core of a monolithic Matriarchal
Fleet-similar to the Imperial Navy of
the non-drow elven nations-with the
same universe-spanning effectiveness
and power.
The Nation of Eternal Twilight is
small-a total of only 100 drow-but
what they lack in numbers they more
than make up for in focus and aggres-
sion. The matriarch is a venerable drow
named Teela Darkcloud, a high priestess
of Lolth, queen of spiders. Teela is well
aware that her clan is nowhere near pow-
erful enough to achieve her goal. Since
she believes fully in her destiny to be the
Ultimate Matriarch of a unified drow
fleet, she knows that she needs powerful
friends. Her knowledge of the races of
space is wide and deep, so it was no great
difficulty for her to pick out the best ally:
the neogi.
Teela knows fully that an alliance with
the neogi is fraught with risk. There are
many more neogi than there are of her
people, and the “small lords” would
gladly break any promise to enslave the
drow. Nevertheless, she feels that she
can offer the neogi enough of value in
the form of magic and drow-weapons
and armor so that, in the short term, at
least, the small lords will hold to their
side of any bargain. In the long term, she
knows that the neogi will turn against
her, but by that time she believes her na-
tion will be strong enough to stand on
their own and fight off the encroachment
of the neogi. (In this, she might be right.
The neogi’s attitude of “own or be
owned’ makes it difficult for the crea-
tures to work together in a coordinated
manner. She and the rest of her nation,
however, are expert at working in con-
cert, particularly when backed by the
power of an entire planet-or shell-of
slave species.)
To further her goal, Teela has carried
out preliminary discussions with a cer-
tain powerful neogi named Serta Ulm,
overmaster of the Serta fleet (one Mind-
spider and three Deathspiders). The next
step in negotiations is a face-to-face
meeting between Serta Ulm and Teela
Darkcloud. For political reasons relating
to “home turf,” Teela has insisted that the
meeting be on her Armada. Ulm (some-
what surprisingly,perhaps) has agreed to
this. Teela has sent a Wasp, escorted by
two helm-equipped Flitters and a stinger-
configuration Mosquito, to pick up the
neogi and bring him back to the Armada
for the meeting. It is this small task force
that the PCs have been unlucky(or lucky,
depending on your outlook) enough to
encounter.
Monarch Armada
Setting: Wildspace
Party: 4-8 characters, levels 7-9
Ship: Any
Setups
(Note: This is designed to follow the
previous adventure “Void Elves”; how-
ever, it can be used as a stand-alone ad-
venture.)
The PCs hear rumors that drow-
manned vessels have been preying on
shipping in a certain region of space.
The PCs hear vague rumors that an
Armada of unusual design has been
sighted in a certain region of space. Per-
haps they are hired by a representative of
the elven Imperial Navy to check it out.
(Since the system in the area is some-
what touchy about incursions by elven
task forces, an unofficial survey is more
politically expedient.)
If the PCs have just completed “Void
Elves,” they’ll know the location of Teela
Darkclouds Armada, and so will (hope-
fully) be able to sneak up on it. (If they’re
smart, they might do it in the captured
Wasp ship.)
In the distance you can see some-
thing frighteningly large occulting
the distant stars. It looks like a hid-
eously enlarged butterfly, its wing
span maybe 600 feet, two times the
length of the butterfly’s “body.” And
there are smaller ships moving near
it-elven Flitters, you assume-
absolutely dwarfed by their mon-
strous mother ship.
This gigantic vessel is the drow’s Ar-
mada. Teela Darkcloud has acquired and
modified a very rare form of Armada in-
deed: the Monarch-class Armada. Only
half a dozen were built by the elves just
before the Unhuman Wars, and then the
design was abandoned. The configura-
tion of the Armada is quite different from
that of the more common class of vessel
described on page 45 of the Lorebook of
the Void. The citadel is carved from the
length of the ship’s body, and the upper
surfaces of the wings are the landing flats
for smaller vessels. In addition, parts of
the citadel are enclosed within domes of
smoke-colored crystal that filters out
those frequencies of light that are harm-
ful to drow.
The dimensions of the Monarch are
similar to those of the Elven Armadas.
The body of the Armada is 300 feet long,
with a beam of 50 feet. The “wings” are
considerably larger than this-as in the
common Armada-but they add very lit-
tle to the tonnage of the vessel. The Mon-
arch Armada has the following statistics:
Monarch-class Armada
Built by: Elves (obsolete
design)
Used Primarily By: Elves, Drow
~~
Tonnage: 100 tons
Hull Points: 100
Crew: 40/100
Maneuverability
Class: D port (left when facing for’ard) and star-
Landing-Land No
Landing-Water: No
Armor Rating: 4 Levels of Readiness
Saves As: Ceramic
Power Type: Major helm
Ship’s Rating: As for helmsman
Standard Armament:
2 heavy catapults
Crew: 5 each
4 heavy ballistas
Crew: 4 each
2 heavy jettisons
Crew: 4 each
2 bombards
Crew: 3 each
Cargo: 50 tons
KeelLength: ’ 300’
Beam Length: 50’
Boarding the Armada
This is the home of the drow Nation of
Eternal Twilight from “Void Elves.” Un-
like normal elven Armadas, this Mon-
arch has only sixteen smaller vessels
associated with it: a Wasp, four stinger-
configuration Mosquitos, a Damselfly,
and ten Flitters (four of them equipped
with spelljamming helms). Of this num-
ber, the PCs have already encountered
two Flitters, one Mosquito and the Wasp.
These might or might not be present
aboard the Monarch, depending on the
outcome of the previous adventure. The
previous adventure will also determine
whether the two neogi, their slaves, and
Larth and Selene Darkcloud are aboard
the vessel.
If the PCs are approaching in the c a p
tured Wasp, two Flitters (no helms) will
leave the landing flats and escort the ves-
sel in for a landing (standard procedure).
Should the PCs be using another vessel
and be detected in their approach, how-
ever, the Monarch will mobilize all its
spaceborne defences-the remaining
Mosquitos and Flitters, plus the
Damselfly-to engage the vessel and de-
stroy it before it can pose a threat to the
Monarch.
The PCs can gain access to the Mon-
arch through the workshop doors or ei-
ther of the gunnery platforms.
The Monarch’s SR depends on who is
operating the helm. Usually this is Tessa
Darkcloud, Teela’s eldest daughter. Un-
der her control, the Monarch has SR of 5.
All directions on or within the Mon-
arch are given in terms of for’ard, aft,
board.
Encounters within the Monarch will
depend on whether the PCs have gained
entry through stealth or by speeding in,
bombards blazing. If the former, then
conditions within the Monarch are “nor-
mal”: if the latter, then the drow are
“alerted.” All areas and encounter tables
for this adventure reflect these two levels
of readiness.
The drow will become alerted if the
PCs draw attention to themselves. If any
drow spot the PCs and escape to spread
the word, the Monarch will become al-
erted in 2-8 rounds. Also, for each con-
secutive round of combat, there is a
cumulative 5% chance that the drow will
become alerted, regardless of whether
drow escape or not. Thus, in the first
round, the chance is 5%. 10% in the sec-
ond consecutive round, 15%in the third,
etc. After one particular melee is over,
assuming that no drow have escaped to
spread the word, then the chance drops
back to 5% for the first round of the next
melee.
Note that the drow are highly intelli-
gent. If a group of them encounters the
PCs, then some will fight a holding
action while others are dispatched to
raise the alarm.
The entire crew, except the command
crew, will have the following designa-
tions and statistics:
“Typical” drow (39): AC 4; MV 12; F2;
hp 2-20: #AT 1: Dmg by weapon; AL CE;
THACO 19. All wear drow armor and
carry daggers (Dmg 1-4).
Drow warriors (24): AC 4: MV 12; F3;
hp 3-30; #AT 1; Dmg by weapon; AL CE;
THACO 18. All wear drow armor and
carry long swords(Dmg I-8)and daggers
(Dmg 1-4).
Drow officers (8):AC 3;MV 12; F5;hp
5-50; #AT 1; Dmg by weapon (long sword
(1-8), or halberd (1-10)); AL CE; THACO
16. They have long swords + 1 at their
belts.
All drow aboard the Monarch have the
same innate magical abilities, usable
once per day: dancing lights, faerie fire
and darkness. Those of fifth level or
greater have the following innate abili-
ties, usable once per day: dancing lights,
faerie fire, darkness, clairuoyance, detect
lie, detect magic, dispel magic, know
alignment, leuitate and suggestion.
Note: If the drow in question are on
any part of the ship exposed to starlight,
they will wear ordinary chain mail, AC 5.
Monarch Body
The body of the Monarch is grown
from the organic crystal comprising
most elven craft, and much of it is actu.
ally air space. Unlike the standard-
configuration Armada, only a few areas
within the body of the Monarch are usa-
ble, the rest being a labyrinthine honey-
comb of crystal. Some areas have been
hollowed out-those used for the two
bridges, the jettison bay and the work-
shop areas-but the majority must be
left intact to maintain the ship’s struc-
tural integrity. The crystal-and hence
the entire Monarch-ranges from light
mauve to deep purple, displaying com-
plex streaks and whorls of color.
The areas inside the body are dimly lit,
with light provided by luminescent
organisms that form inclusions in the
crystal walls (holes were excavated for
the ”lights,” then the crystal was allowed
to grow back around and over the glow-
ing organisms). The level of illumination
is about equal to starlight.
Main Bridge.
Normal: The captain and helmsmen-
Delak and Tessa Darkcloud, respective-
ly-are present with their standard
bridge crew of four drow (typical drow;
hp 3 , 6 , 6 , 6).
Alerted: Delak, Tessa and the bridge
crew are guarded by a detachment of five
warriors(hp 8, 9, 12, 15, 16).
The bridge has one companionway
leading to a door in the forward wall, giv-
ing access to the weapons. There are also
spiral stairs leading into the antennae
(watch towers). The “eye” windows on
t h e bridge a r e made of the s a m e
smoked-crystal material as the dome on
the back of the Monarch. This crystal filt-
ers out the wavelengths of light painful
to drow. The room is dominated by the
major helm, a large and ornate throne
grown from bright green crystal. Along-
side are the maptable and chart racks. A
small cabinet contains assorted naviga-
tion instruments.
Delak Darkcloud (drow): AC 1;MV 12;
C13; hp48: #AT 1;Dmg byweapon(ham-
mer (2-5)) or spell; Str 13, Dex 9, Con 10,
Int 13, Wis 16, Cha 11; spells: protection
from good, darkness, detect good, detect
magic, command, cause light wounds;
enthrall, hold person, spiritual hammer.
flame blade, heat metal, aid; protection
from fire, animate dead, feign death,
prayer, cause blindness, cause disease;
tongues, cause serious wounds, protec-
tion from lightning, spell immunity; raise
dead, plane shift; blade bam‘er (x2); AL
CE; THACO 12. She wears banded armor
+ 2 and has a hammer hilted at her waist.
Note that if the Monarch is alerted, Delak
will probably have had time to cast some
of her more relevant spells on herself.
Tessa Darkcloud (drow): AC 2; MV 15;
C10; hp 45; #AT 1; Dmg by weapon; Str
12, Dex 13, Con 12, Int 1 1 , Wis 14, Cha
11; spells: none; AL CE; THACO 14. She
wears splint mail +2, but is unarmed.
Antennae Watch Towers.
The towers reach 40‘ above the bridge
and the hangar. The top chamber is
ringed with crystal windows, each cov-
ered by a movable shutter.
Normal: One typical drow (hp 8) is on
watch duty in each tower. He is armed
with a hand crossbow and a long sword.
Alerted: One drow warrior (hp 13) is on
watch duty in each tower. He is armed
with a hand crossbow and a long sword.
Gunnery Platforms.
There are two platforms, one by each
bridge.
Normal: The forward olatform has a
skeleton crew of 9 typical drow (hp 5, 6,
7,8,8,9,9,10,11).
Alerted: Each platform is fully
manned by 18 typical drow (hp 5,5,6,6,
7, 7, 8,8, 8, 8, 9, 9, 10, 11, 11, 12, 13,
14).
Each platform is equipped with two
heavy ballistas and one heavy catapult.
Each weapon is mounted on a rotating
turret. Unlike the bombard positions,
there are no domes over these platforms
(too complicated when multiple weap-
ons might be engaging multiple targets).
In bright light, the effectiveness of the
weapon crews goes down; the rate of fire
decreases by one (to 114 rounds for the
catapults and 115 rounds for the ballis-
tas), and the weapon’s THACO increases
by 1 (to 19 for the catapult and 13 for the
ballistas).
HangarMrorkshop Area.
Normal or alerted: Deserted.
This huge empty area was designed to
give workmen a chance to repair Flitters
in an enclosed area. Currently,no vessels
are in for work. The roof is supported by
gnarled “trunks” of crystal distributed
every 40 feet. Set into the roof are two
large hatches through which small ves-
sels can be brought into and out of the
workshop. Stashed in the stern end of
the area are two large cabinets that con-
tain the tools of the elven shipwright
(hammers, clamps, trimming knives,
fine binding wire, small weights, etc.)
Auxiliary Bridge.
Normal: The area is usually deserted
(25% chance of one typical drow
oresent: ho 7).
’ AlertediThe bridge is guarded by a de-
tachment of five drow warriors (hp 15,
17, 20, 22,23).
Unlike the forward bridge, this area
has no window to the outside. The room
is dominated by the back-up major helm,
a large and ornate throne grown from
bright green crystal. Alongside are a
maptable and chart racks, containing a
duplicate set of charts. A small cabinet
contains assorted navigation instru-
ments. Note that only one helm can be in
use at a time in the same vessel.
Jettison Bay.
Normal: Only one jettison crew (four
typical drow; hp 6, 8, 8, 12) is on duty.
Alerted: Both jettison crews (eight typi-
cal drow; hp 6, 7, 8, 8,9, 12, 13, 18) are
on duty, accompanied by three drow war-
riors (hp 14,15, 18).
Mounted in this huge area are two
heavy jettisons. The rear area of the bay
is closed by large articulated doors that
are so well counter-weighted that they
can be operated by one drow. The jetti-
sons are capable of firing at aft targets;
they are intended to “discourage” ships
with the temerity to pursue the Monarch.
Bombard Turrets.
Normal: Deserted.
Alerted: In 2-12 rounds after the alarm
is raised, three typical drow are present
in each of the two turrets to crew the
bombards.
Each rotating turret is covered by a
crystal dome, with an opening in it to al-
low the bombard to fire out (think of an
observatory dome). Along with the bom-
bard, each turret stockpiles 10 bombard
projectiles and enough smoke powder
for 10 rounds. The turrets are so ar-
ranged that the bombards cannot fire at
the Monarch itself (either by accident or
through malign intent).
The bombards are located on the un-
derside of the Monarch on purpose. This
way, if they happen to misfire or if the
powder is detonated by enemy action,
the damage to the “battle surface” of the
Monarch will be minimized.
Monarch Citadel
The long, narrow configuration of the
Monarch’s body puts severe constraints
on the design of the citadel. The citadel’s
structure has a length of some 125 feet,
but at no point is it wider than 35 feet.
The interior, of the structure is
lit by the same luminous inclusions as
the Monarch body. In no area is the illu-
mination brighter than starlight. Unless
otherwise stated, all ceilings are 10 feet
high. Of course, there are no windows
(consider the race involved).
1. Exit to Flight Deck.
These double doors lead out onto the
wings of the Monarch, allowing access to
the Flitters as well as being a general en-
trance for any guests brought in on other
ships.
Normal: One ceremonial guard-a
drow warrior carrying a halberd in addi-
tion to his normal arms-stands in front
of each door (hp 15.21).
Alerted: Four drow warriors-two
armed with halberds. two with hand
crossbows-guard each door (hp 12, 13,
13, 14, 15, 19, 23, 25).
2. Aft Exit to Gunnery Platform.
This door allows access to the rear
weapons platform.
3. Guardroom.
The room is furnished with hard
wooden chairs and a table. A
dartboard-painted like a a non-drow
elfs head-is mounted on a wall. (Dart
holes are clustered around the eyes and
the throat.) A rack on another wall holds
two drow hand crossbows and 24 bolts.
Normal: Four drow warriors (hp 9, 11,
15, 21) are lounging around, playing
cards ( + 1 to chance for surprise).
Alerted: The room is empty (the
guards are on patrol).
4 and 5. Storage Room.
A repository for all kinds of trash and
knickknacks: brooms, ropes, old buck-
ets, floor soap, bundled up cloths, a mop
or two, etc.
6 and 7 . Pilots’ Quarters.
Even though the pilots of the Flitters
and other vessels are the elite among
warriors, their quarters are nothing if not
spartan. Each room sleeps six in
curtained-off alcoves. An alcove con-
tains a hard sleeping pallet and perhaps a
small foot locker. In some alcoves, the
walls are decorated with drow art-to hu-
man eyes, only slightly less repellent
than garbage hung on the wall. A com-
plete search of each room will turn up the
following loot: 3-30 pp, 1-4gems (1 00 gp
base), 1-2 sets of drow armor, and 1-4
spell books belonging to the pilot/mages
(see below).
There are two types of drow who oper-
ate the smaller vessels: male pilot/mages
and female pilotlpriestesses. Typical sta-
tistics are as follows:
Pilothage: AC 4; MV 12;W4;hp 4-16;
#AT 1; Dmg by weapon (dagger (1-4)) or
spell; AL CE; THACO 19. Pilot/mages
carry only daggers. Their spellbooks are
locked in foot lockers.
Pilot/priestess: AC 4; MV 15; C4; hp
4-24; #AT 1 ; Dmg by weapon (club (1-6))
or spell; A L CE; THACO 18. Pilot/
priestesses have small clubs hanging on
their belts.
The DM should determine what spells
each NPC knows. This will determine the
spells found in captured spellbooks.
Normal: In each room, there are 0-2
(ld3-1) each of pilotlmages and pilot/
priestesses present, napping or sitting
around chatting.
Alerted: In each room, there are 0-1
(ld2-1) each of pilot/mages and pilot/
priestesses. None will be napping. The
others are on duty elsewhere.
8. PantrylLarder.
The food storage room for the Mon-
arch. A permanent cone of cold keeps
one corner of the room cold. Here are
hung sides of meat (the nature of the
beasts they were taken from is best left
unimagined). Baskets of vegetables and
strange fruits, plus sacks of grain take up
the rest of the room. (Most of this food
was stolen from ships with the bad for-
tune to encounter the drow Monarch.)
9. Kitchen.
The smells issuing from this room are
too horrible for most humans or demihu-
mans to contemplate (lizard men or
neogi would probably feel sudden pangs
of hunger, however). Along the port wall
corner is a large wood-fired iron stove. In
the oven a large haunch of something is
baking, while a huge cauldron best left
unexamined bubbles away on top. Racks
on the wall contain cooking tools, includ-
ing a selection of eight rather nasty
knives and cleavers (treat as knives or
daggers).
Normal: ld3 typical drow (hp 5.8,11)
are present, whipping up the food. They
are unarmed, but if a scrap starts, they
can quickly snatch knives from the rack.
Alerted: Only one typical drow (hp 11)
is present, making sure the food doesn’t
burn. He already has a large knife (treat
as a dagger) stuck down his belt just in
case trouble starts.
10. “Wine Cellar.”
This is where the Monarch keeps its
potables. The door is usually kept locked
(+ 10% chance to pick). The room con-
tains tuns of beer, casks of brandy and
barrels and ewers of wine. There are also
four small earthenwarejugs containing a
patently nasty and incredibly potent
drow spirit distilled from fermented fun-
gus. (Any non-drow taking more than a
sip is immediately moderately intoxi-
cated: +2 to morale, -3 to Intelligence,
-4 to Wisdom, -2 to Dexterity, -1 to
Charisma, -1 to hit, but + I to hit
points. The effect lasts 20-40 rounds.)
Each jug of spirit is worth 300 gp to any-
one stupid enough to want to drink the
stuff (lizard men and some dwarves
come to mind).
The majority of the room is taken up
with huge barrels of drinking water.
11. Warriors’ Bunkroom.
The room sleeps 20 drow warriors, but
not very comfortably. Two-level wooden
bunks line all walls, and sleeping pallets
cover most of the floor. Many bunks have
foot lockers beside them. A complete
search of the room will turn up the fol-
lowing loot: 1-12sets of drow armor, 20-
60 pp and 2-8 gems (100 gp base), in
addition to the usual paraphernalia sol-
diers keep in their foot lockers (playing
cards, useless mementos, good luck
charms, etc.).
Normal: 2-12 drow warriors are
present (hp 9, 12. 15. 15. 18, 18, 19. 19.
20,20,20,22); 75% are asleep.
Alerted: The room is empty.
12. Armory.
Weapon racks are everywhere,
mounted on the walls and free-standing
on the floor. The total contents of the
room are 10halberds; 5 drow hand cross-
bows + 60 bolts; 10 javelins; 5 long
swords; 8 short swords; and 20 daggers.
13. Guards’ Messroom.
Long wooden tables and hard benches
dominate the room.
Normal: 2-4 off-duty drow warriors-
fully armored but packinq onlv
daggers-are sitting around chacing (hp
5. 9. 17. 17).
. I
’ Alerted: The room is empty.
14. Storage Room.
Contains more brlcabrac: tools, bro-
ken wooden furniture, discarded art-
work, etc.
15. Library.
The walls are lined with shelves groan-
ing with books. All are in the drow lan-
guage, and none contain much of
interest to non-drow.Most are intermina-
ble histories of the drow race, genealo-
gies of the Nation of the Eternal Twilight,
texts on drow philosophy, etc.
Normal: There is one typical drow
present (hp 7), doing some research.
Alerted: The room is empty.
16. Workers’ Quarters.
This room sleeps 20 typical drow. As
in room 11, there are several foot lockers
around. A complete search of the room
will turn up the following loot: 1-8 suits
of drow armor, 10-30 pp and 1-6 gems
(1 00 gp base).
Normal: 2-8 typical drow (hp 4,6,6,8,
9,9,11,12) are present; 75% are asleep.
Alerted: 1-3 typical drow (hp 6, 8, 9)
are present. They’re off duty, but not
asleep.
17. Officers’ Quarters.
This room, slightly more luxurious, is
home to two drow officers. The sleeping
pallets are more comfortable, and there
are tapestries-depicting drow involved
in a favorite sport (hunting humans
through caverns)-on the walls. A com-
plete search of the room will turn up 20
pp and a 500 gp diamond.
Normal: 1-2drow officers are present.
They are armed with long swords + I .
There is a 50% chance that each is
asleep.
Alerted: The room is empty.
18. Priestesses’ Quarters.
Even more luxuriousthan room 17,this
room is home to two drow priestesses.The
tapestries on the wall depict sacrifices to
the goddess Lolth. A complete search of
the room will turn up the following loot: 25
pp and a diamond-encrusted spider sym-
bol (1,200 gp value).
Normal: 1-2 drow priestesses are
present (AC 4; MV 15; C4; hp 18, 19; #AT
1; Dmg by weapon (hammer (2-5)) or
spell; spells: bless, command, cause fear;
hold person, spiritual hammer; AL C E
THACO 18). They are armed with ham-
mers. There is a 25% chance that each is
asleep.
Alerted: One priestess is present (hp
18). She is deep in prayer ( + 1 to chance
of surprise).
19. Chapel.
At the aft end of the room is an altar
formed from a single block of obsidian.
Mounted on the wall above the alter is a
silver representation of Lolth. This sym-
bol is 4’ across, weighs 75 pounds, and is
worth 250 gp.
Normal: A service is in progress. A
drow priestess (AC 4; MV 15; C4; hp 16;
#AT 1; Dmg by weapon or spell; spells:
bless (d), cause fear; hold person, spint-
ual hammer; AL CE; THACO 18) is con-
ducting the service, while three typical
drow (hp 5,5, 12) and two drow warriors
(hp 12, 13) kneel in prayer. The drow
priestess wears a voluminous black robe,
with a hood pulled forward to cover her
head and shadow her face. This is the
typical vestment used by priestesses of
the Nation when conducting services
(priestesses usually don’t wear these
robes anywhere else but in this chapel or
the family chapel upstairs, but if the
Monarch is alerted, other drow will-
probably-be too busy to question any-
one wearing such a robe). She is
unarmed.
Alerted: A drow warrior (hp 10) kneels
before the altar, praying for strength and
courage in the current troubles.
20. Robing Room.
Wardrobes along the wall contain
eight full-length black robes with hoods.
The door to the corridor is locked; all
priestesses have keys.
21. High Priestess’s Room.
One of Teela Darkcloud’s lesser
daughters, Landa Darkcloud, makes her
home here. As befits her temperament, it
is spartan, with nothing of value to en-
liven t h e dark, black-draped room.
(Landa is truly devout, and keeps noth-
ing of value.)
Normal: There is a 25% chance that
Landa Darkcloud is present, deep in
meditation (+2 on surprise).
Landa Darkcloud AC 3; MV 15; C7; hp
1 9 #AT 1 ; Dmg by weapon or spell; Str
12, Dex l l , C o n 9 , Int 12, Wis 16,Cha 10;
spells: bless (x2). detect magic; augury,
enthrall (2);pyrotechnics,cause disease;
cause serious wounds; AL CE; THACO
16. Landa is unarmed. Around her neck
she wears an adamantine spider symbol
(1.000 gp value).
Alerted: There is a 75% chance that
Landa is present, casting augury (using
her holy symbol as the material compo-
nent) to determine what her role should
be in the present troubles.
22. Reliquary.
This room contains a number of holy
items of great significance to the drow
Nation. They are displayed in great
honor in crystal-frontedcabinets. These
cabinets are locked (-15% chance to
pick), but they can be smashed in by
bludgeoning weapons (each of the four
cabinets can withstand 6 hit points of
damage). The four cabinets contain:
1. A gold-plated skull (one of Teela’s
ancestors; 350 gp value) and a platinum
ceremonial dagger (500 gp; useless as a
weapon, since the blade is so soft).
2. An adamantine circlet with a ruby
set in the browpiece (1.000 gp value) and
a matching choker (850 gp value).
3. A copy of the “Book of the Spider”
(a sacred writing in the worship of Lolth).
Its binding is made from the scales of a
celestial dragon. The binding is worth
2,000 gp; the book itself is of value only
to certain sages (and even then, not
worth too much).
4. The cloven skull of a drow hero of
centuries gone by. The skull emits an
aura of necromancy. The skull is worth-
less (although the PCs probably won’t re-
alize that. . . ).
Normal: There is one typical drow (hp
12) present, engaged in meditation.
Alerted: The room is empty.
23. Trophy Room.
Mounted on the walls are the heads of
many beasts slain by the drow in hunting
expeditions, including a small celestial
dragon and more than a couple of
dwarves and elves. Other trophies on the
wall include a cloven ogre-sized shield. a
riven helmet, and two cracked two-
handed swords. In the middle of the
room stands an enormous suit of plate
mail. fully 9’ tall and more slender (pro-
portionately) than a human. The design
is totally unfamiliar: it is built to accom-
modate a creature with three legs and
three arms, showing trilateral symmetry.
From the shape of the suit, it’s obvious
that this couldn’t fit any of the well-
known three-limbed races like xorns or
tiraphegs; the conformation of the crea-
ture must be unlike any currently recog-
nized in the known worlds. N o one
aboard the Monarch knows the history of
this trophy (in fact, a drow expedition of
long ago found it in an abandoned aste-
roid base). The room is deserted.
24. Official Meeting Room.
This is set up like a large boardroom,
with a 30’ long obsidian-topped table
down the center of the room, with 20
chairs positioned around it. This is where
Teela Darkcloud and her immediate fam-
ily conduct official business with other
parties that they must treat as equals
(this is where the meeting with the neogi
is scheduled to take place). Other audi-
ences, where Teela is dealing from an ob-
vious position of power, take place in the
throne room.
Normal: If the neogi escaped from the
PCs aboard the Wasp ship (see “Void
Elves”), there is a meeting in progress
here when the PCs arrive. This is also the
case if this adventure is being played
stand-alone. Serta Ulm and Serta Jerro
are present, with their umber hulk
slaves, as are Larth and Selene Dark-
cloud. (If any of these worthies were
killed in the previous adventure,then ob-
viously they are unable to attend the
meeting.) Their statistics are repeated
here for convenience:
Larth Darkcloud (drow): AC 3; MV 12;
F7lW5; hp 60; #AT 312; Dmg by weapon
(long sword(l-8), drowcrossbow(1-3))or
spell; spells: chill touch(k2), magic missile
(x2); web, stinking cloud; oampiric touch;
AL CE; THACO 13.
Larth now wears drow armor that is ef-
fectively +2 (although non-magical). He
is armed with a long sword and a drow
hand crossbow.
Selene Darkcloud (drow): AC 3; MV
15; C10; hp 37; #AT 1; Dmg by weapon
(footman’s mace (2-7)); spells: none (see
below); AL CE; THACO 14. Selene now
wears drow armor that is effectively + 2
(although non-magical). She is armed
with a footman’s mace. Since she has
used a helm in the last 12 hours, she can
cast no normal spells. This does not af-
fect her innate drow abilities, however.
Neogi (Serta Ulm, Serta Jerro): AC 3;
MV 6; HD 5; hp 32 (Ulm), 25 (Jerro); #AT
3; Dmg 1-311-311-6;SA slowing poison;
A L LE; THACO 15.
 Umber hulk(x3): AC 2; MV 6; HD 8 +8;
hp 43, 47, 50; #AT 3; Dmg 3-12/3-12/1-
10; SA confusion; AL C E THACO 11.
The umber hulks are loyal to their neogi
masters, and will fight to the death to
protect them.
In addition, Teela Darkcloud is
present.
Teela Darkcloud (drow matriarch): AC
1; MV 15; C15; hp 72; #AT 1; Dmg by
weapon or spell; Str 13, Dex 11, Con 12,
Int 13, Wis 16, Cha 13; spells: bless,
curse (&?),cause light wounds (d), dark-
ness (&?),sanctuary; charm person (x2),
enthrall (d) heat
, metal, hold person (&?),
spiritual hammer; animate dead, contin-
ual darkness, cause blindness, cause
deafness, cause disease, protection from
fire; abjure, cause serious wounds (x3).
protection from good 10’ radius (&?);
cause critical wounds (~2). slay liuing (x2;
reversed version of raise dead); blade bar-
rier, word of recall (to her private chapel);
destruction (reversed resurrection); AL
CE; THACO 12.
Teela is armed with a mace +2.
Around her neck she wears a mithril spi-
der symbol encrusted with diamonds
(2,500 gp value). Although vicious and
aggressive, Teela is not stupid. If a fight
looks a s though it’s going against her,
she immediately seeks escape. probably
using her word of recall. She will not sur-
render to “inferior races,” preferring to
die nobly in battle. If there is no alterna-
tive to death, she will have no qualms
about taking anyone or anything down
with her to destruction.
As discussed in “Void Elves,” the neogi
will do whatever it takes to save their
lives . . . even (maybe) tell the truth
about their purposes here.
A drow officer carrying a halberd
stands guard inside each door.
Alerted: Teela, Larth and Selene are in
Teela’s throne room (assuming the latter
two survived the previous adventure). If
the neogi and umber hulks survived to
reach the Monarch, they have been left
here, with four drow officers (hp 25, 27,
28, 30) a s additional bodyguards, until
the present crisis is over.
25. Teela’s Office.
Running a drow Nation is more than
glory and power; unfortunately, it also in-
volves management and paperwork.
This is where Teela performs the more
mundane duties of her position. There
are bookshelves along the walls, contain-
ing several centuries’ worth of family re-
cords. Against the starboard wall is a
large desk, inundated with papers.
Everything here is very prosaic, nothing
to interest intrepid adventurers.
26. Private Study.
The door is locked; only Teela has a
key. Bookshelves line the walls, most of
them the drow equivalent of trashy ro-
mances and potboilers. The only other
furniture is a comfortable armchair. This
is where Teela comes to relax and get
away from everything.
27. Teela’s Quarters.
Opulent is hardly a strong enough
word for this room. Priceless carpets
and tapestries are everywhere (unfortu-
nately for greedy adventurers, all are
too large to move without much effort).
The huge canopied bed is draped in
cloth-of-gold. The furniture itself is all
antique and valuable, pillaged from
ships and outposts of a dozen different
worlds. Teela’s dressing table is littered
with jewelry: a platinum tiara (900 gp),
three rings(500 gp each), a pair of emer-
ald earrings (300 gp each), an electrum
brooch (250 gp), and a necklace of
priceless, glowing “fire diamonds” from
a distant shell (15,000 gp). The drawers
of the dresser contain the drow equiva-
lent of lingerie (spider-silk undergar-
ments and the like) plus a few other
drow fancies (a dagger or two, etc.).
Normal: There is one very young drow
priestess (AC 4; MV 15; C1; hp 3; #AT 1;
Dmg by weapon or spell; spells: cause
light wounds; AL CE; THACO 20) present.
She is Teela’s maid, and is cleaning. Al-
though young and weak, she’s cunning
and nasty: she’ll fake terror of any in-
truders, hoping they’ll feel sorry for such
a young slip of a thing . . . and then d o
her best to kill them at the first opportu-
nity. She is currently unarmed.
Alerted: The room is empty.
28. Family Chapel.
Against the aft wall is an altar of ob-
sidian. Inlaid into the wall above it is a
representation of Lolth. Black hangings
drape the walls. On the altar is an ada-
mantine symbol of Lolth (value 1,000
gp). This has been cursed so that, when
any non-drow touches it, it gains the
powers of ajewel of attacks. The room is
empty.
29.Selene’s Room.
This room, with its single large bed, is
used by Selene. A wardrobe against the
aft wall contains both male and female
drow formal garb (both are black robes,
albeit differently tailored). The wardrobe
also contains a long sword and a drow
hand crossbow (no bolts, though). There
is a dressing table, but there’s nothing on
top of it. The drawers contain similar
items to the one in Teela’s room, plus a
choker studded with garnets (350 gp
value).
30. Boras Darkcloud’s Room.
Boras is (or was) Teela’s husband.
Some century or two ago, they had a
slight marital tiff, and Teela killed him.
Although there could be no repercus-
sions from this, Teela being the ultimate
ruler and sole law-giver of the Nation, it
was a slight breach of etiquette. S h e dis-
posed of the body and told the rest of
the family that Boras had “gone off
alone hunting space beasts” (how he
managed this when all of the Nation’s
vessels were still on the landing flats
was somewhat of a mystery). Even two
hundred years later, the family still
maintains the fiction that Boras will be
back someday, and his room is kept
ready for that eventuality (Larth uses
the room until his return).
Although less opulently furnished
than Teela’s room, this is obviously the
room of a powerful lord. A wardrobe be-
side the bed contains the robes of state
he wore as Teela’s consort (black robes,
of course). Another cabinet contains his
hunting gear (another hint that some-
thing is amiss): two javelins, a long
sword, three daggers, a hand crossbow
with 12 bolts, and a heavy crossbow with
12 bolts. A spear stands in the corner.
The main attention-getter in the room,
however, is a huge stuffed yeth hound,
against the aft wall. (This was Boras’s fa-
vorite hunting companion. When it died,
in a moment of sentimentality Boras had
it stuffed so he could keep his old friend
with him.)
3 1. Guest Room.
Although the drow Monarch has
guests very rarely, one room has been set
aside for them. This room is furnished
comfortably if not flashily, with two beds,
a couple of tables, and a handful of
chairs. (This furniture is, of course, to-
tally useless t o the drow’s current
guests.)
32. Guest Study.
This quiet room has two armchairs for
private conversation or reading. The
walls are lined with the drow’s idea of
light reading. (Some of it is even in
tongues other than drow.) There is noth-
ing of value here.
33. Throne Room.
The walls are hung with drapes of silk
in black and the hue of dried blood. At
the forward end of the room, upon a
raised dais, is Teela Darkclouds throne,
carved from a single chunk of obsidian.
Next to it on the dais is a space where a
smaller chair obviously once sat. (Per-
haps it will be replaced when Boras fi-
nally returns from his hunting trip.)
The throne room has a smoky crystal
dome above the rest of the Armada’s
structure. From here, Teela oversees
“her future territories . . . ”
Normal: The room is empty (Teela and
the others are downstairs, meeting with
the neogi.)
Alerted: Teela, Larth and Selene (as-
suming they survived) are present, dis-
cussing strategy. Teela is on her throne,
the others are standing before her.
Teela’s throne is flanked by four drow of-
ficers. They have long swords + I
sheathed at their hips.
34. Teela’s Robing Room.
Wardrobes against the walls hold Teela’s
robes of office-black velvet garments
worn only on occasions of the highest
solemnity-and a simple black
priestess’s robe. A locked chest, trapped
with a poison needle (save vs. poison at
-4 or die; the poison inflicts 2-24 pts. of
damage even if the save is made), con-
tains the Coronet ofthe Nation: an elabo-
rate adamantine crown worth 5,000 gp. It
emits an aura of alteration magic. When
worn by a female drow-and only a fe-
male drow-it limns the wearer with a
faint glowing aura, similar to a very sub-
dued version of faerie fire; this aura is so
faint that it cannot be seen in conditions
brighter than moonlight.
Anyone who comes in contact with the
wearer suffers the effect of a shocking
grasp spell cast at the 12th level of abil-
ity. This effect is continuous while the
wearer is alive and keeps the crown on
her head; there is no limit to the number
of shocks the item can inflict.
Teela will try to retrieve the crown and
put it on should trouble start.
35. Private Chapel.
As high priestess of the Nation, this
chapel is reserved for Teela’s sole use.
Against the starboard wall is a small al-
tar. Resting upon it is a symbol of a spi-
der shaped from some form of ceramic.
It emits an aura of evocation magic. If the
item is shattered-as it will be if thrown
against a hard surface-it blossoms into
a mini-fireball, 5’ in radius. Although
small, the fireball is incredibly hot, in-
flicting 10d6points of damage to anyone
within the blast radius and having a 50%
chance of igniting anything inflammable
within 40‘ of its center point.
This is the sanctuary to which Teela’s
word of recall takes her.
36. “Bolt-hole.”
With secret doors on each end, this is
an ideal place for Teela to hide until the
heat is off. There is enough food and wa-
ter for 3 days.
Encounter Tables
The number and nature of encounters
will depend on whether or not the Mon-
arch has been alerted. Each turn that the
PCs spend aboard the Monarch, roll
Id10 and consult the following tables:
Normal
1 -
2 -
3 -
4 1 typical drow
5 1-3typical drow
6 1-3 drow warriors + 1-3 typical
drow
7 1 drowmage’
8 1 drow priestess**
9 1 drow priestess** + 1-3 typi-
cal drow
10 1 drow mage* + 1 drow priest-
ess** + 1-3typical drow
Alerted
1 -
2 -
3 1 drow warrior
4 1-3 drow warriors
5 1 drow officer + 1-3 drow
warriors
6 1 drow officer + 1-6 drow
warriors
7 1 drowmage*
8 1 drow priestess**
9 1 drow priestess** + 1-4drow
warriors
10 1 drow mage’ + 1 drow priest-
ess* * + 1-4 drow warriors
*Mage(3):AC4;MV 12: W3(hp3-12):
#AT 1; Dmg by weapon (dagger: 1-4) or
spell: spells: burning hands, magic rnis-
sile, scare; AL CE; THACO 20. Armed
with a dagger.
**Priestess (6): AC 4; MV 15: P4 (hp 4-
24): #AT 1; Dmg by weapon (footman’s
mace: 2-7) or spell; spells: curse, cause
light wounds, darkness; heat metal, si-
lence 15’ radius; AL CE; THACO 18.
Armed with a footman’s mace.
Concluding the Adventure
Possibly the smartest thing that the
PCs could do would be to infiltrate the
Monarch, find out what’s going on, and
then make a quick getaway. As discussed
in “Void Elves,” information about the
drow-neogi dealings would be of great in-
terest to the Council of Admirals of the
elven Imperial Navy, and they’d probably
handsomely reward anyone who brought
it to their attention . . . as long as some
proof was provided.
Conceivably, a party of fired-up PCs
might be able to totally defeat the drow
and take over the Monarch. This might
not be such a good idea. If any drow es-
capes death-by stealing a Flitter, per-
haps (and this is really quite
likely)-then other drow Nations will de-
finitely hear about what happened. Even
if there’s no real allegiance between Na-
tions, there is certainly some racial
pride. The other space drow won’t let “in-
ferior races” tromp some of their kind
without some kind of vengeance. (Also,
from a pragmatic point of view, there’s a
perfectly good Monarch out there, prob-
ably underdefended by a motley crew of
adventurers and ripe for the taking.)
As for the neogi, they won’t know the
details, but they will know that Serta Ulm
and Serta Jerro haven’t come back. The
loss means nothing on the personal
level, but it does seem to imply that drow
aren’t above tricking and killing neogi
ambassadors. The word will certainly go
out that “the drow in the Monarch’ are
enemies. And everyone knows how the
neogi treat enemies!
The elves are very hard-nosed about
making sure no non-elves get their mitts
on a Monarch. Any “unauthorized”
Armada-particularly of the Monarch
configuration-will be attacked on sight
by any elven vessel that encounters it.
Other races have probably heard
enough “space dust” tales about Mon-
archs to recognize one if they see it. Any-
one spotting the Monarch will immedi-
ately assume that it’s manned by drow
. . .a race hated and feared by most non-
Evil societies.
The bottom line is, if the PCs decide to
sail around in the Monarch, practically
everyone’s hand will be turned against
them. (It’s not quite as bad as trying to
use a Deathspider for a pleasure craft . . .
but almost.) After the fifth unprovoked
attack, the PCs might realize that the
best move is to ditch or scuttle the Mon-
arch.
Should the PCs not break up the meet-
ing between the drow and the neogi, then
an alliance-rather a shaky one, but an
alliance nonetheless-will result be-
tween the two races. Drow officers may
rarely be seen aboard neogi ships, and
the drow Monarch will frequently be ac-
companied by at least one Deathspider
when it’s on a raid. Both races know that
the alliance is for the short term only-
one will betray the other, probably
sooner than later-but for the next sev-
eral months or years, the drows’ growing
area of influence will not be a healthy
place to be. . .(Future adventures can be
developed around attempts to break up
this unholy alliance before the drow
grow too strong.)
Time Capsule
Setting: The Flow
Party: 4-6 characters, levels 6-8
Ship: Any
Setup
The PCs are travelling through the
Flow between two crystal shells. For
some reason, they are travelling at tacti-
cal speed (perhaps they are too close to a
crystal shell to travel at full speed).
Thud!
Not a loud sound, but enough to
catch your attention. Particularly out
here in the Flow, where there should
be nothing to “thud” against.
“We’ve struck something,” one of
your crew sings out.
“No kidding,” you want to answer,
but hold your tongue. You join the ob-
servant crewmember by the rail and
look down.
Yes, you certainly did strike some-
thing. Something interesting. Resting
against your hull, right on the gravity
plane, it looks like a statue, a six foot
high statue with six limbs. Definitely
insectoid, but something about it
makes it seem disconcertingly man-
like.
Several other crewmembers have
gathered around to look at the curios-
ity as well. “What should we do with
it?” one of them asks, somewhat
plaintively.
Good question. . .
The object is directly on the ship’s
gravity plane and drifting slowly away
from the hull. It is surprisingly light for
its size and appearance, weighing only
about 180 pounds (rather than the 500
pounds or more that a stone statue
would weigh), and therefore easy enough
to hoist on board.
Thri-Kreen
Any PC who has seen a thri-kreen be-
fore will immediately recognize that this
is a mantis warrior. PCs who have a profi-
ciency in animal lore can make a profi-
ciency check to see if they recognize it.
The thri-kreen may look like a statue,
and its grey surface seems to be as hard
as stone, but appearances can be deceiv-
ing. This is actually a living thrbkreen
marooned in the phlogiston, and kept in
a state of suspended animation by that
strange medium.
About 4,000 years ago, a mantis war-
rior fell overboard while its ship was in
combat with another vessel in the Flow.
By the time the combat was ended, the
thri-kreen vessel was unable to find its
lost crewmember. For the next 40 centu-
ries, the thri-kreen drifted, inert. Until
now.
Exposed to the air aboard the PCs’ves-
sel, the “statue” begins to change.
Within five minutes its color begins to
shade from dull grey toward a brilliant
light green. Its surface, while still hard,
becomes less stone-like and more like
that of a fingernail. This transition takes
one hour. At the end of that period, the
thri-kreen twitches suddenly, looks
around and stands up.
With quick, darting motions of its
head, the “statue” looks around you,
the strange colors of the Flow reflect-
ing in its multi-facetedeyes. The crea-
ture makes a high-pitched whirring,
rasping sound, then is silent for a mo-
realizes one is not forthcoming, it
speaks haltingly in the Common
tongue, its voice harsh and gritty, with
a strange accent.
“For my life, I thank you.”
Tiktitik (thri-kreen): AC 5; MV 18; HD
6 +3; hp 24; #AT 5 or 3; Dmg 1-4(x4)/2-5
or by weapon; SA paralysis; SD dodge
missiles on roll of 9 or better; AL CN;
THACO 15. Tiktitik has lost his polearm,
but still has six of his “throwing wedges”
(Dmg 3-8)sheathed in his harness.
The Mantis’s Tale
The thri-kreen-who is named Tikti-
tik-is a male warrior, and a member of a
space-going band that called itself the
People of the Celestial Mantis. This group
were devout members of what was, 40
centuries ago, the dominant sect in the
race’s religion. (This religion remains
multi-faceted and largely incomprehen-
sible-except to thri-kreen,however, who
seem able to understand its intricacies
and apparent contradictionswith no trou-
ble, and conduct interminablephilosophi-
cal discussions about them.)
The tenets of this group’s belief in-
cluded an injunction to “spread the
word” among the spheres, and to convert
every living being to the worship of the
Mantis God of the Eternal Lotus. Under-
standably, this put the thri-kreen into
conflict with various other races who
were quite happy with their own reli-
gions, thank you. This refusal to accept
the inevitable didn’t sit well with the thri-
kreen, who brought the full forces of
their spacefaring fleet to bear against
these “infidels.” They did this without
any animosity, and would have been sur-
prised to learn that their victims took
matters somewhat more personally.
At the time, the thri-kreen’srather pro-
tean religion viewed time as a fixed and
immutable thing. The past is unchange-
able, and the future is fixed. In fact, the
words “past” and “future” are mislead-
ing, since time is rather like an intricate
tapestry of infinite extent. Nothing
changes in time, as nothing changes on a
tapestry. The fact that time seems to flow
and things seem to change is simply be-
cause creatures are able to view only one
portion of the tapestry at a time.
This rather specious argument may
seem nonsensical, but it was of great im-
portance to the thri-kreen. They saw
their destiny as fixed-to spread “the
truth” throughout the universe-and
hence could feel no animosity, and offer
no mercy, to those obstacles that stood
in their way.
The ship that Tiktitik was aboard was
given the task of “converting” a human
outpost. On the way there, however, the
ship was ambushed by a human vessel. It
was during this battle that Tiktitik went
overboard.
The mantis warrior is intelligent, and
has immediately concluded two things.
The first is that he has been in stasis in
the Flow, and thus much time might
have passed since his misfortune. The
second-based on the fact that the ship
isn’t commanded by his people, and that
the banner of the Mantis God of the Eter-
nal Lotus doesn’t fly from the mast-top-
is that something has gone somewhat
wrong with his race’s “manifest destiny”
idea. While both realizations are pro-
foundly disturbing to to him, he is
strong-willed enough to take them in
stride.
With the philosophical underpinnings
of his life suddenly removed, Tiktitik has
one wish: to be reunited with his people.
Whether they are in space or on a planet,
he wishes to be surrounded by others of
his kind so he can try to come to terms
with everything that has happened. He
will beg the PCs for their help. (Unfortu-
nately, his Common was never that good,
and the language has changed consider-
ably since he was last conscious. This
provides the DM with a good chance to
role-play, with lots of possibilities for
misunderstandingson both sides.)
If the PCs have played the adventure
“The Outpost,” they might ask Tiktitik
for information on the Elders. Unfortu-
nately, he knows little. He’s heard of
them, certainly-trilaterally symmetri-
cal beings that his race called “The Lost
Gods”-but he’d always assumed that
they were simply tales for the young, in-
tended to frighten thri-kreenfresh out of
the pupa. He can tell the PCs nothing
concrete.
Hatred from the Past
Tiktitik isn’t the only “relic” from that
ancient battle that still drifts in the Flow.
Many humans aboard the ambushing
ship were slain, and five of them have re-
mained in the phlogiston as ephemerals.
These undead have one central goal: to
possess the bodies of living creatures so move into space. Tiktitik returns in the
that they can escape the Flow and return adventure “Jihad.”
to a crystal shell. Along the way, how-
ever, they would relish a chance at re-
venge against the race that slew them
The Outpost
and their fellows. The surviving thri- Setting: The Flow, wildspace
kreen soon left the phlogiston, so they Party: 4-6 characters, levels 6-8
could do nothing to them. But here, drift- Ship: Any
ing in the Flow with them, was one of the
hated mantis warriors. Perhaps they Setup
could eventually get their revenge . . .
Within 2-12turns of Tiktitiks return to The PCs have put in to an outpost,
consciousness, the five ephemerals at- spaceport or groundling port (perhaps
tack the ship. They will concentrate on even the Rock) for repairs andlor resup
the PCs and crew; none will try to attack ply. It is the day of their intended depar-
the thri-kreen. ture, and they’re having one last farewell
Ephemeral (x5): AC 2; MV 18:HD 5; hp drink in a port tavern.
16, 18, 19, 22, 26; #AT 1; Dmg 1-4;SA
drain Intelligence; SD hit by + 1 or better “’Ere.”
magical weapons, regeneration; AL NE; You look up from your drink to see a
THACO 15. burly man leaning over you.
If any of the ephemerals manage to “’Ere,” he says again, “there’s er,
possess their victims, they will use their somebody over there what wants to
new-found bodies to attack the thri- talk wif you.”
kreen. They will attack this target in pref- You look at him quizzically.
erence to all others, even if it means that He answers your unspoken ques-
their possessed body gets cut down. If tion. “You’ll recognize’m. no mistake.’
they are able to slay the thri-kreen,they Just look for the place what people
will then turn their attentionstoward get- don’t want to go near.” And with that
ting back into a crystal shell. masterpiece of mangled grammar, he
If the PCs are able to drive off the moves away.
ephemerals, the monsters will follow the
ship at a distance until they’ve regener- If the PCs decide to investigate, read
ated fully, then attack again. The PCs can the following:
be rid of them only by destroying them
totally or by leaving the Flow. The burly fellow was right. You have
no trouble spotting the “place what
Concluding the Adventure people don’t want to go near.” In the
otherwise-crowded tavern, there’s an
Assuming he survives, Tiktitik is a
loose end that the PCs must tie up one
area totally empty of patrons except
for one. The patron is sitting alone at a
way or another. If the thri-kreen has his
table, with what looks like a kobold
way, the PCs will ship him off somewhere
squatting placidly under the table.
where he can be with others of his kind.
The patron raises its head as you ap-
He’ll understand, however, if the PCs
proach. White eyes without pupils
refuse; in this case he’ll ask to be
catch the light, and glistening purple
dropped off at the nearest port where
skin ripples as four facial tentacles
spelljamming vessels often dock, in
move in a complex pattern.
hopes of finding his people.
Enterprising PCs might try to per-
suade the thri-kreen to throw in his lot
with them. This will be a tough sell, as
Tiktitik will need a lot of reasons to give
up his quest for other thri-kreen. Bribery
and promises of treasure and adventure
won’t do it: the PCs must sway him with
philosophical arguments appropriate to
his nature and outlook.
If Tiktitik rejoins his race, he will be-
come a leader of a new religious move-
ment, encouraging the thri-kreen to

“I greet you.” The words sound cool
and sharp in your brain. The mind
flayer gestures with a three-fingered
hand at nearby chairs. “Will you join
me? I have a proposition that should
interest you.”
The PCs have the choice to withdraw.
If they decide to hear the mind flayer out,
read the following:
Words again form in your brain.
“Translated into symbols your mind
can recognize, my name is “Thought
Taker.” You feel a touch of something
that could be humor-albeit cold and
detached. “It is not a s bad a s it
sounds. I a m a philosopher, a student
of the universe. I learn from others,
borrow from their wisdom and learn-
ing. Thus ‘Thought Taker.’ You see?”
“As I mentioned,” the mind flayer
continues silently, “I have a proposi-
tion for you. There is a . . .”-it
hesitates-“a place I wish to go. My
research indicates that there is some-
thing there that I wish to possess. I
wish for you to take me to this place. I
will take the item I want. As payment,
you may have anything else you find
at the place. I would estimate that this
share will be highly valuable. On all
this I give my oath:’
Again that touch of cold humor. “I
understand, however, that your races
d o not hold the oath a s highly a s does
mine. You wish something tangible to
bind u s to the contract. Will this suf-
f ice?”
The mind flayer reaches inside its
voluminous robe and extracts a fiery
red opal almost the size of its fist,
which it lays on the table before you.
The opal is worth 2500 gp. (For the
first time, the buzz of puzzled conver-
sation from the curious onlookers
falls silent.)
The mind flayer stands, a s does its
kobold companion (pet?), eager and
trusting a s a puppy. (Charmed, you
imagine.) “If our compact is sealed,”
the mind flayer’s “voice” rings in your
head, “I wish to leave immediately.
Where is your ship?”
N o matter how often the PCs ask,
Thought Taker won’t tell them where this
“place” is that it wishes to go, other than
that it is in a different crystal shell. The
creature will show them the charts when
A A
they are in space and not before. “I fear
others will come to know through you;’
he explains. If the PCs promise or swear
not to divulge the information, Thought
Taker says sharply, “I do not ask your
oath, and so d o not accept it, not on this.”
Thought Taker
Perhaps surprisingly, considering the
reputation that mind flayers have on
most worlds, everything that Thought
Taker has told the PCs is true. Measured
by their own, admittedly alien yard-
sticks, mind flayers are by and large
highly ethical and moral creatures. Prob-
lems arise only where their ideas of eth-
ics and morals diverge from those of
other races. . .
Thought Taker’s research indicates the
location of an asteroid base used by an
ancient race that no longer seems to ex-
ist in this universe. Whether this race
died out, was destroyed, or moved on to
other planes of existence is unknown, as
is almost everything else about it.
Thought Taker has spent years going
through the epic poetry of wide-
voyaging species such as the thri-kreen
for details of this race, which the illithid
has come to label as “the Elders.” It was
in a particularly abstract thri-kreen lyric
poem that the creature found what
seems to be enough information to find
what could only be a deserted Ancient
outpost.
The “item” that Thought Taker wishes
to acquire is any single object that will
prove, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that
the place is an Elder outpost. (The fact
that this was not made clear to the PCs
can be put down to mismatches of men-
tal symbology between the mind flayer’s
and PCs’ thought processes.)
Thought Taker (mind flayer): AC 5; MV
12: HD 8+4;hp 40; #AT 4; Dmg special;
SA mind blast; SD 90% magic resist-
ance: AL L E THACO 1 1 . The mind flayer
can use the following powers, one per
round, a s a 7th-level mage: suggestion,
charm rnonster/person, €Se leuitate, as-
tral projection, and plane shift. Thought
Taker has chosen to class the PCs as
equals, at least for the duration of the
voyage; thus the notorious mind flayer
arrogance will be under tight check when
around them. (The same can’t be said for
the PCs’ crew, however.)
Kobold: AC 7: MV 6; HD 1/2;hp 2; #AT
I; Dmg 1-4or by weapon; AL LE: THACO
20. The kobold-whose name is Ja-Te-
Jak-is unarmed and unarmored. As the
PCs might suspect, he has been
charmed, and considers Thought Taker
to be his mentor and protector. The mind
flayer certainly intends to take the ko-
bold on board ship with him. If the PCs
ask why, the illithid explains, “It is my
food. When I hunger, I will eat its brain.”
(Should the PCs take exception to this,
the illithid looks at them sharply and
shoots back, “Better that I should eat
yours?”)
The Voyage
Once everyone is on board and the
PCs’ ship is underway, Thought Taker
brings out charts showing their destina-
tion. (These use illithid symbology,
which is totally alien and can only be de-
ciphered while the mind flayer is looking
at the charts and relaying the informa-
tion directly to the PCs’ brains.) The voy-
age involves a trip through the Flow;
reaching the destination shell will take
25 days. During this time, the DM should
feel free to throw at the PCs any encoun-
ters that may seem appropriate (perhaps
a wandering radiant dragon, a distant
sighting of the Spelfjarnrner, or one of the
other adventures in this book).
Potential Troubles
About eight days out, one of the PCs
spots Thought Taker tossing a rather
bulky sack overboard. The sack contains
the brainless husk of the kobold.
Thought Taker feels no remorse or em-
barrassment; the only reason he is dis-
posing of the remains with even the
slightest semblance of secrecy is to
spare the feelings of the PCs and the
crew, who apparently have different atti-
tudes toward the care and tending of
food.
For the next 10 days, Thought Taker’s
appetite issated. After that, however, the
illithid’s movements become a little
quicker and jerkier, and it keeps throw-
ing long looks at members of the crew. If
asked, the creature will admit its hunger,
but gives an oath that it will touch no
member of the crew.
This hardly sets worries to rest among
the crew, of course: they strongly doubt
that anything with tentacles instead of a
face would think twice about breaking its
oath. This doubt and tension has an ef-
fect on the crew’s morale, at least a s far
a s Thought Taker is concerned. The
crew’s morale drops by three points, and,
every day starting on the eighteenth day
out of port, the crew must make a morale
check. Failure of this check means that
one or more crewmembers decide to “do
something about” the mind flayer.
Exactly what they decide to do de-
pends on how badly they fail the morale
check. A marginal failure means that a
delegation of crew goes to the captain,
asking that the mind flayer be banished
from the ship immediately. A bad failure
means that at least one crewmember de-
cides to take matters into his own hands.
(Out-and-out mutiny is the worst result,
of course. A DM with a nasty streak
might decide that the crew is dissatisfied
enough to d o something desperate.)
Assassinat ion
On a badly failed morale check, one of
the crewmembers decides to kill the
mind flayer, solving the problem once
and for all. If the crew is well-developed,
the DM should pick the NPC who would
most reasonably be expected to make
such a decision. If the crew is composed
of typical “walk-ons,”the DM can use the
character below:
Tinker: AC a(?); MV 12; F3TT1; hp 16;
#AT 1; Dmg by.weapon; Str 14, Dex 14,
Con 13, Int 11, Wis 8, Cha 9; thief skills:
PP 15%, OL lo%, FIRT 5%,M S 40%,
H S 35%, DN 15%, CW 60%, RL 0%;AL
CN; THACO 18. Tinker is a large, robust
human who moves with a silence and
grace that belies his size. H e wears
leather armor (or whatever other type is
prevalent among the crew); he carries a
dagger plus whatever other weapon is
typical among the crew.
Thought Taker’s sleeping habits are
somewhat unusual. The illithid needs to
sleep only two or three hours in each
twenty-four, and takes it in a handful of
cat-naps, none lasting over an hour. The
creature makes an effort to match its ac-
tivity cycle to that of the ship, however;
during shipboard “night,” it remains in
its cabin or bunk, in silent thought. When
it does sleep, it first levitates itself to
hang in the air a foot or so off the deck or
bunk. In this comfortable position, it
naps. It always wakes within an hour, at
least ten minutes before its levitate spell
runs out.
The disaffected crewmember waits un-
til shipboard night, then does his or her
level best to sneak up on the mind flayer
and kill it a s it sleeps. Unless the PCs
stand watch over the mind flayer’s cabin,
they won’t know what’s going on until
they see the aftermath.
This aftermath is disturbing. A very
troubled Thought Taker approaches the
PCs and asks to speak to them privately,
in the hold. There the illithid shows them
the body of the crewmember. Read the
following:
The liquid syllables of mental
“speech” form in your head. “He
came to me last night,” the illithid ex-
plains, “with this.” H e holds out to you
a notched dagger. “ H e wished to slay
me because I represented a threat to
him and his colleagues. He did not say
this in so many words, but he did not
have to. I give you my oath that I did
not wish to kill him. But he would not
give his surrender. My only other op-
tion was that I die myself, and my time
is not yet. I hid his body here to give
you time to decide how to handle this
matter.’’
The ultimate results will depend on the
PCs’ actions. The crew, of course, will no-
tice that Tinker is missing, and rumors
will already have started. If the PCs try to
tell thecrew the truth, theywill not be be-
lieved; the crew will think that the “inhu.
man monster” killed the crewman for
food. If the PCs try to hide the body, how-
ever, there’s a good chance that a crew-
member will find it, precipitating the
same result. The third option is to dis-
pose of the body in some way. Again, un-
less the PCs are very cunning about it,
there is a good chance that the crew will
come to learn of their actions. In this
case, the crew will think that the PCs are
somehow in league with Thought Taker,
and the chance of mutiny will increase.
In any case, there will be no further
unilateral actions against Thought Taker,
but the crew’s overall morale suffers a
-3 penalty (-5 if the crew believes the
PCs to be in league with the illithid).
(Note: The previous drop in morale only
affected the special daily morale checks
caused by the illithid’s presence. This
new penalty is factored into all morale
checks until Thought Taker is perma-
nently off the ship. Even then, morale
will return to normal slowly, increasing
by one point per day until it reaches its
original level. If a 20 is rolled for a morale
check at any time that the illithid is on
board, the crew mutinies.)
Thought Taker’s Story
Now that they are underway, the il-
lithid is quite willing to talk about its
goals and to share what little it knows
about the Elders.. . but only if the PCs
ask specifically. It is too polite (by its own
standards) to force an unwanted story on
them. Should the PCs ask, read the fol-
lowing:
Your brain tingles as the illithids
words insinuate themselves into your
mind.
“I know little about the Elders, as I
call them,” the illithid explains. “Little
apart from the fact that they are inde-
scribably ancient. Perhaps the thri-
kreen knew them, millennia ago,
when the People of the Celestial Man-
tis had a significant presence in
space.”
The mind flayer must feel your sur-
prise, because it fixes its white, feature-
less eyes on you. “Yes,”it answers your
unspoken question, “the thri-kreen
preceded your race-and mine-into
the greater universe, perhaps by mil-
lions of years. They talk little of it now,
even those who still dwell in the void.
But they remember the glory. They re-
member it very well.”
You feel the mental equivalent of a
sigh. “But a s for the Elders . . . a
mighty race, they were worshipped a s
gods by many worlds, many peoples
now extinct. I have seen representa-
tions of them carved on many ruins
and painted on the walls of many
caves. Their form is unmistakable,
even when transformed through the
eyes of misguided faith. And their
symbol, the three-petalled flower, or
the three-pointed star, finds its way
into the symbology of many races.
“While your races and mine were
barely taking our first steps away
from our cosmic cradles, the Elders
were already disappearing from this
universe. Whether it was by choice or
by misfortune, I know not. I do know,
from ancient thri-kreen poetry I have
translated, that they left behind at
least one outpost. Deserted, without a
doubt. But there I should be able to
find what I need: proof of my theories,
proof that the Elders did exist. I
should find it there.” A red-tinged fin-
ger stabs at a point on the chart. Your
destination.
The Dead Shell
Thought Taker’s ultimate destination
is within a crystal shell that none of the
PCs have visited before. (In fact, none of
them know of its existence.)
The system within the shell is a stand-
ard system, but with a few differences.
The system’s primary is a black hole sev-
eral miles across, but with the mass of a
sun several times bigger than Realm-
space’s sun. Because the primary gives
no light or heat, the sphere is dark and
cold. The only illumination comes from
a few stars, tiny lights sparsely scattered
across the inside surface of the shell, and
from a ring of gas surrounding the cen-
tral black hole that glows with a sullen,
reddish light.
Orbiting around the black hole are two
planets and something else. Both are
Size G Earth-typeworlds, circled by rings
of ice. They are voidworlds, devoid of air,
water and life. They are so old that, over
the millions of millennia, mountains
have collapsed under their own weight.
Their surfaces are flat and featureless,
and killingly cold. One planet is on inner
orbital track #5, the other on outer or-
bital track #2. Both planets revolve
clockwise around the primary. Use the
Planetary Display map found in the
SPELWAMMER” boxed set to deter-
mine the system’s layout.
The third body is an irregular nickel-
iron asteroid on outer orbital track #12,
revolving counterclockwise (retrograde
motion) around the primary. It is so small
and so far distant from the primary that it
would be almost impossible to find with-
out the information on Thought Taker’s
charts. This tiny third body is the il-
lithid’s destination.
The Outpost
The nickel-iron body that Thought
Taker insists on referring to as “the Out-
post” is roughly ovoid, about 250’ along
its major axis and 200’ along its minor
axis. Thus, it is of the same scale a s dwar-
ven citadels. It has no atmosphere.
Chambers have been excavated within
the asteroid-an impressive achieve-
ment considering the density and hard-
ness of the material-which can be
accessed by one opening to the outside
(Thought Taker calls it “The Portal”). The
chambers are roughly spherical, with cy-
lindrical tubes connecting them.
Perhaps because of the nature of this
sphere, or the nature of its masters, the
Outpost has no gravity whatsoever
within it. Outside it has a perfectly nor-
mal gravity plane, a s would a ship. As
soon as characters pass inside, however,
they are totally weightless. This is obvi-
ously not a recent development, since ar-
rangements within the Outpost show no
up-down orientation. The place was obvi-
ously built with zero-G in mind.
Movement inside the Outpost abides
by the familiar laws of physics. A moving
object will remain in motion until an-
other force is applied, or until it hits an
obstacle. A drifting character can move
(slowly) by throwing equipment in the
opposite direction (maximum speed 3).
Non-natives of space have a +6 penalty
on their initiative rolls and a -2 penalty
on all attack rolls. (Proficiency in Weight-
less Combat negates these penalties, of
course.)
The Outpost is totally dark inside. Illu-
mination must be brought in by the PCs.
Air
Air-or rather, lack of it-might hin-
der exploration of the Outpost unless
PCs can solve the problem. Characters
can depend on their personal air enve-
lopes, but this seriously limits the time
they can spend within the Outpost. The
clerical spell create air would obviously
be of use.
Enterprising characters with a large
ship might try to maneuver their vessel
so that the Portal into the Outpost is
within the ship’s atmosphere envelope.
When this occurs, some of the ship’s air
will flow into the Outpost. Unless the ad-
venturers’ ship is almost the size of a
Deathspider, however, this is a suicidal
move, since the hollowed-out regions
within the Outpost have a volume of 100
tons. According to the rules for exchang-
ing air on pages 12-13 of the Concor-
dance of Arcane Space, unless the
adventurers’ ship is at least 66 tons, the
Outpost will drain away all of the ship’s
air without making any difference to the
interior, leaving both the ship and the
Outpost in vacuum. (To use these rules,
assume that the Outpost has Deadly air.)
If the PCs aren’t ingenious enough to
figure out a solution by themselves,
Thought Taker can provide a solution. H e
has a one-shot magical device, in the
form of a fragile crystal, which will pro-
vide up to 10,000 cubic yards (100 tons)
of air for a period of 2-8 hours. After this
time, the air dissipates. To use the item,
someone must smash the crystal inside
the area to be provided with atmosphere
(by throwing it hard through the Portal,
for example).
(Note: The figure of 100 tons refers
only to the hollowed-out volume of the
Outpost. The total volume of the com-
plete asteroid is more than four times
that.)
The Surface and the Portal
The surface of the Outpost is rough
and rugged, with many outcroppings
and chasms, and lots of small craters
that imply this system was not always as
peaceful as it now appears. At first
glance the Portal resembles an over-
large crater: roughly round, and about
20’ across. Only from directly above is it
apparent that this is more than a simple
crater: it is a tunnel bored into the heart
of the asteroid.
If characters try to enter the Portal,
they will feel a slight resistance against
inward movement. This increases to a
maximum 5 feet inside the threshold.
Even at its maximum, the resistance is
barely noticeable, and doesn’t impede
movement at all. Once within the Out-
post, the same resistance is felt against
outward movement. (The occupants of
the Outpost set up a force field across the
Portal, perhaps to make sure that their
atmosphere didn’t escape. Over the mil-
lennia the force field has weakened to its
current meager level.) The tunnel nar-
rows until it is 10 feet in diameter.
The Chambers
The chambers in the Outpost are ar-
ranged three-dimensionally so that the
four outer chambers form the vertexes of
a regular tetrahedron; the central cham-
ber is connected to each outer chamber
by a single tunnel. Chamber 1 is the only
one connected to the outside (via the
Portal). As mentioned before, the cham-
bers are roughly spherical. There is no
updown orientation among their fea-
tures; they were obviously designed for
zero gravity.
1. Entry Chamber.
you can feel something that you’ve
never felt before: age, pressing in on
you. This outpost has been around
longer than you’d even care to think
about. Although you have no real ba-
sis for the belief, you’re convinced
that this thing has been deserted for
longer than many crystal shells have
been in existence.
A patch of deeper darkness up
ahead tells you you’re coming to the
end of the tunnel. You drift forward,
and the walls open up around you into
a roughly spherical space some 30’ in
diameter.
The walls of the chamber are
coated with dust deposited over the
millennia. But, through the patina,
you can see strange murals on the
walls of totally alien landscapes.
There’s something about the colors
and the perspective that looks slightly
“off,” as though the paintings were in-
tended to be viewed through very dif-
ferent optical equipment. The detail is
intricate, however, and the workman-
ship incredible. These are not your av-
erage cave paintings . ..
Thought Taker points to a symbol
on one of the murals: a three-pointed
star. His words ring in your head: “The
Elders.”
There are several strange artifad
scattered around the room, mounted on
the walls. Some of these have interesting
properties and are of significant value.
The PCs should find this out only
through experimentation, however.
One such artifact is a thin sheet of dull
metal, three feet high by two feet wide,
nounted in a metal frame.
ing rapidly. Through your atmosphere
envelope and the tiny amount of air in
the chamber, you can hear a high-
pitched tone. As the light shifts-
perhaps someone’s shadow fell across
the metal plate-the tone changes in
The metal plate converts light into vi-
brational energy, and hence, sound.
There is no mechanism or magic that
accomplishes this conversion: it’s sim-
ply a property of the metal sheet. This
sheet might be sold to a sage for 1.000
gp. or the PCs might put it to use them-
selves (as a light-activated burglar
alarm, perhaps).
There is a square plaque mounted
on one wall that can only be a piece of
art. About 2 feet square, it displays an
intricate geometric pattern made
from thin strips of metal mounted on
edge. You reach out in wonder to
touch it, but some instinct stops you.
You look close<: the strips of metal
have edges as keen as any razor.
They’d have shredded your hand if
vou’d touched them.
The “knife art” can be sold to a collec-
tor for up to 1.000 gp. In a pinch, it can
also be used as a weapon, inflicting 2-8
points of damage. Its speed factor is 10;
no one can be proficient in its use, so
non-proficiency penalties apply.
2. Central Chamber.
Your light glints off something me-
tallic ahead of you. lt’s a large three-
pointed star, perhaps six feet across,
hanging unsupported in the center of
the chamber.
Thought Taker pushes past you in
his rush toward the star. “The Elders.”
His words in your head are trium-
phant. As the mind flayer moves for-
ward, you see something you hadn’t
noticed before. There’s a tiny object
hanging in space just beyond each tip
of the three-pointed star. The tiny ob-
ject is another three-pointed star, a
perfect duplicate of the larger symbol
but no larger than your palm.
“Look.” It’s Thought Taker’s mental
“voice.” The illithid is pointing to one
of these smaller “sub-stars.’’ “Look
closely.”
Hanging in space just beyond each
of the three points is a tiny, glinting
speck of metal. A sense of wonder
grows within you. If your eyesight
were acute enough, would you be able
to pick out the trilateral symmetry of
that tiny metal speck? And-if you
could see things that infinitesimally
small-would you be able to see the
minuscule stars that frame that tiny
object? And the stars around each
one of those. . . ?
If defect magic is cast on the star, it ra-
diates a strong aura of enchantment,
with nuances of dweomers that are very
reminiscent of a major helm. (In fact, this
construction is a helm, but based on a
principle different to that used by the Ar-
cane. No existing race can control the
helm, however; only the Elders have the
correct mental architecture. The most
any creature can d o is activate the helm
enough to make the Outpost surge, and
to trigger other effects . . .
“The helm.” Thought Taker’s men-
tal voice is filled with awe. “I
wonder . . . The creature reaches
” The sinuous form lunges toward
out and delicately touches the central
star. It closes its white eyes, and for a
split instant you can feel its concen-
tration.
Light! Light, blossoming all around
you. The rock walls glow with a cold,
harsh light. The Outpost surges
around you with a sudden jolt.
Thought Taker has triggered the helm.
The jolt is enough to disorient and to
cause minor damage. All characters
within the Outpost must make a Dexter-
ity check on l d 2 0 or be bounced against
the walls for 1-4 points of damage. Char-
acters who fail this roll are also stunned
for 1-3 rounds. The mind flayer is unaf-
fected, since it is in contact with the
helm.
tinues. With a hissing squeal,
Thought Taker snatches its hand away
from the star and covers its eyes.
The illumination comes from no dis-
tinct source-the entire wall surface of
all five chambers glows-and is equal to
full daylight.
Sound! A sharp roaring, and a sud-
den increase in air pressure. Some-
thing hurtles out of one of the
tunnels.. .
The Outpost has become home to a
creature known a s a space drake, a close
relative of the radiant dragon, that en-
tered this shell with one of its larger
brethren but was left behind. The crea-
ture is wingless, with a body like a moray
eel. It is 50’ long and about 5’ in diameter
at its thickest point, but it is so supple
that it can maneuver effectively in any
area at least 20’ in diameter.
Space Drake: AC 2; MV 12, FL 30 (C);
HD 10; hp 65; #AT 2; Dmg 2-16/1-12
(biteltail); SA breath weapon (Dmg 6d6);
S D 30% magic resistance; AL N(E);
THACO 11.
The space drake is exceptionally
hungry-no wonder; it’s had nothing to
eat but asteroid for quite a while-and
will attack ferociously. Perhaps because
it looks different from the others, or per-
haps because it is closest to the center of
the chamber, the space drake makes its
first attack against Thought Taker.
Thought Taker. The illithid gives a
whistling scream of terror. Almost too
fast for the eye to follow, the mind
flayer reaches out and snatches one of
the hand-sized stars. . . and vanishes.
Instantly, you are plunged into dark-
ness.
Thought Taker has got what it
wanted-concrete proof that the Elders
were once aboard the Outpost-and has
used its plane shift ability to escape (al-
though the PCs might assume that it was
destroyed by the “star-helm”).The crea-
ture will not return. As far as it is con-
cerned, it has discharged its side of the
bargain it struck with the PCs. They are
welcome to anything they find within the
Outpost-particularly the space drake.
For its part, the drake will use its ma.
neuverability and powers to their best ef-
fect in trying to kill and eat the PCs. It is
unhindered by the darkness that fell
when Thought Taker deactivated the
helm (and hence the lighting system). If
seriously injured, the creature will try to
make its escape.
Apart from the central star-helm-
which Thought Taker rendered com-
pletely inert by taking the smaller
star-there are a few other items of inter-
est that the space drake hasn’t eaten.
There is a large cabinet that resembles
a metal wardrobe some ten feet tall. It
contains an enormous suit of plate mail,
fully 9‘tall. The design is totally unfamil-
iar: it is built to accommodate a creature
with three legs and three arms, showing
trilateral symmetry. The size and config-
uration makes it apparent that the armor
could never fit a creature like a xorn or a
tirapheg; this armor was worn by no crea-
ture ever reported in known space. En-
graved on the triple breastplates are
intricate patterns made up of the three-
pointed star motif. The cabinet also con-
tains three broad-bladed swords (treat as
two-handed swords). The hilts of the
weapons are ridged and channelled, as if
fitted to manipulative organs only dis-
tantly related to humanoid hands. (Un-
less the weapons are re-hiked by a
weaponsmith, they can be used but at a
- 1 penalty to hit because of the strange
nature of the grip.) The weapons emit a
faint aura of evocation magic. They have
no bonus or penalty to hit, and they have
no other powers. (They used to be highly
enchanted, but the. dweomer has faded
almost to nothing over the millennia.)
Another metal cabinet, this one only 4’
tall, contains what must be charts.
Rather than parchment or paper, the
charts are scribed onto sheets of a flexi-
ble, metallicized material (like metalli-
cized mylar). The symbology is totally
alien, making them almost impossible to
decipher. Without magical assistance
(such as a wish), deciphering the charts
will take 2-6 weeks of study by someone
with skills in that area. When the charts
are deciphered, they show crystal shells
and planets of wondrous nature totally
unknown to the PCs. Unfortunately, the
charts were drawn up several millennia
ago, and the crystal shells have drifted so
far since then that the charts are useless.,
There is another rack on the wall that
contains three delicately tapered wands
made of silvery metal. Two are totally in-
ert; the third has an aura of evocation.
This is a form of wand o f magic missiles,
with 100 charges remaining. It can fire
up to 5 missiles per round, each missile
costing one charge and inflicting 2d4+ 1
points of damage. The missiles take the
form of tiny, silver three-pointed stars. To
trigger the wand, the user must picture a
certain geometrical form in his or her
mind-the Elders’ equivalent of a word
of command. (Finding out exactly how to
trigger the wand might motivate quite a
quest . . . )
There is a recessed drawer alongside
the rack of wands. Inside is a book made
of leaf-like crystals. The book can be
translated as the “Lyric of the Eternal Lo-
tus,” an ancient apocrypha to thri-kreen
holy writings. Unlike other later copies of
the “Lyric,” this book makes no mention
of the mantis warriors’ “manifest des-
tiny” in space that permeates much of
their writing. For this reason, it might be
of interest to certain collectors. (If the
DM plans to run the adventure “Jihad!”
the PCs should be unable to find a buyer
for the manuscript.)
Under their patina of space dust, the
walls bear murals. These depict scenes
from space, showing some very alien
planets (disc worlds, torus worlds, flat
worlds, etc.). Nowhere is any representa-

tion of the creature that might once have
worn the strange suit of armor.
3. Space Drake Lair.
The drake has made this as comfort-
able for itself as it can. Unfortunately for
historians, this remodelling involved eat-
ing everything in the chamber.
Even though the large drake has (pre-
sumably) been killed or driven off, this
chamber is not deserted. The drake was
taking care of its single offspring, a blind
“space newt.” This creature is barely 10’
long, and its eyes have not opened yet;
otherwise it resembles its parent in all
particulars.
Space Newt: AC5; MV 8, FI 24 (B); HD
3; hp 11; #AT 1; Dmg 1-8 (bite); SA
breath weapon: SD 30% magic resist-
ance; AL N(E); THACO 17. The newt can
breathe a single energy pulse per round,
inflicting 2d4 points of damage. How-
ever, since the creature is currently blind,
all saving throws are made at +8. Any
bite attack by the creature is at -4.
When the PCs enter the chamber, the
space newt sets up a high-pitched keen-
ing cry, and moves tentatively toward
them. (It wants to be fed.) If the PCs at-
tack, it will fight to the death (being too
stupid to think of any alternative). If,
however, the PCs feed it (anything will
do; a rock, a dagger), it will settle down.
The creature is very impressionable,and
will “imprint” on anything that feeds it
when it’s hungry. This presents an oppor-
tunity for the PCs to acquire an interest-
ing pet. During its blind state (which lasts
6 months), the newt will follow anything
that feeds it on a regular basis. When its
eyes open. it will firmly imprint on the
first creature to feed it. From then on, it
will be loyal to that creature. Space
drakes take five years to mature, and live
for up to 1,000 years.
The adult space drake used this cham-
ber as lair and consumed all but a few
small items in this room. Most of these
are worthless (dented shields or metal
hull plates, etc.), but a few have some sig-
nificant value: a golden chalice studded
with moonstones (550 gp value), a silver-
plated helmet with a huge emerald set in
the brow (1,200 gp), a length of heavy
gold chain (350 gp), and a bloodstone
the size of a human fist (1,000 gp). There
is also a small box made from beaten
gold (250 gp). Inside the box, resting on
red velvet, is a ring of truth.
4. “Planetarium.”
This chamber is perfectly spherical,
with smooth, metal-surfaced walls.
Hanging in the geometric center of the
chamber is a strangely-shaped“saddle.”
(PCs can make a checkvs. Intelligence to
realize that this saddle is the only reason-
able design for a seat to accommodate a
three-limbed creature.) Although there
are no visible supports, the saddle is im-
movable.
As soon as any living creature touches
the saddle, the walls of the chamber turn
black and appear to be studded with
stars. The illusion of suddenly being sus-
pended in space is almost perfect.
This is a planetarium of sorts. Through
thought alone, any creature touching the
saddle can “navigate” through space at al-
most infinite rates of speed, passing eas-
ily into and out of crystal shells, and
moving as easily through the Flow as
through wildspace. (This is all a simula-
tion, of course.) The effect ends, and the
chamber walls return to normal, as soon
as contact with the saddle is broken.
5. Records Room.
The walls are lined with racks con-
taining hundreds of tiny scrolls, each
made of the same flexible material as
the charts. The scrolls are contained in
metal tubes. Mounted on the wall oppo-
site the tunnel is a box-like device with a
square piece of milky-white crystal set
into its front. Below this crystal is a cir-
cular hole exactly the right size to ac-
cept one of the metal scroll containers.
If a scroll. still in its container, is in-
serted into this hole, the crystal glows
and symbols appear on it. If a character
touches the device, he or she can move
the symbols around. (This is similar in
effect to a mind-directed microfiche
reader crossed with a word processor.)
Again, the symbology is totally alien,
requiring magical assistance or exten-
sive cryptographic analysis. The “mi-
crofiche” contains further information
on the shells and worlds depicted on the
charts from chamber 2. There are also
day-to-day records of life in the Out-
post. Unfortunately for the PCs, these
are almost totally incomprehensible,
even when translated. (It’s a common
misconception that you can understand
anything as long as the words are trans-
lated. In fact, the words can be next to
useless if you don’t share the back-
ground information and mental outlook
that those words depend on.)
 If the PCs try to dismount the device
from the wall, it becomes totally inert,
and can never be made to work again.
The PCs aren’t the only creatures to
have stumbled upon the Outpost. Some
centuries ago, another exploratory mis-
sion explored these caverns. One of their
number was slain-perhaps by the space
drake-in this very chamber. This ex-
plorer was named Divad, a human from
the Forgotten Realms. A s he died,
Divad’s final wish was to return to his
home. So strong was this desire that
Divad’s spirit has remained in this place
as a haunt. The haunt will attack the first
PC to enter the chamber. If the haunt suc-
ceeds, it will try to force the other PCs to
take it back to Realmspace. As soon as
the haunt enters the shell that was its
home, it will release the possessed char-
acter and vanish forever.
Haunt: AC O/victim’sAC; MV 6/aspos-
sessed victim; HD 5; hp 24/victim’s hp;
#AT 1; Dmg special/by weapon; AL CN;
THACO 15.
Concluding the Adventure
Although there may seem to be little
“treasure” within the Outpost, many of
the relics and artifacts can be sold to col-
lectors, sages, etc. for significant sums
of money(“al1 the market will bear”). The
PCs should be left to figure this out for
themselves, of course.
Thought Taker happily returns to his
home, and will never trouble the PCs
again.
Future adventures can revolve around
searches for other relics of the Elders, or
encounters with their wondrous crea-
tions. (Perhaps the Spelljammer itself was
created by the Elders, and perhaps they
are still aboard her. . . )
Jihad!
Setting: Rock of Bra1
Party: 4-6 characters, levels 7-10
Ship: Any
Setups
The PCs are on the Rock of Bral.
They hear rumors that a space-faring flo-
tilla of thri-kreen ships is cutting a swath
across the universe, trying to spread the
word of a new religion. Other rumors-
slightly more hysterical, this time-
claim that the flotilla is heading directly
toward the Rock. . .
(Note: This adventure takes place sev-
eral months after the events described in
“Time Capsule.”)
You’ve never seen the Rock like this
before. People hurrying through the
streets with parcels or baggage on
their backs. Looking around ner-
vously as though the thri-kreen might
be landing at any moment. Whisper-
ing in shadows, no doubt trying to ar-
range for transport off the Rock.
Even on the lower surface of the
Rock, things are far from normal.
When the rumors first started, the
ship traffic to Prince Andru’s docks in-
creased. The people of the Rock re-
joiced. Wasn’t it obvious that their
prince was reinforcing the Rock,
bringing in weapons and men, build-
ing up a strong defensive fleet . . . ?
Then they heard what was actually
happening: those ships weren’t rnak-
ing deliveries, but pick-ups. The
prince was moving his valuables off
the Rock, and it was obvious that he
planned to follow them long before
the thri-kreen flotilla arrived. So
much for defense. The Rock was to be
left to its fate.
The DM should manipulate matters so
that the PCs find out some of the details
concerning the thri-kreen ship. Curious
playerswill probably try to find out them-
selves; others might have to be “prod-
ded” into it. In any case, when the PCs
encounter an appropriate source for in-
formation, read the following:
“People have got it all wrong,” your
contact tells you flatly. “They think
the insects will just come in and exter-
minate everyone on the Rock. That’s
just not the way it happens. They
don’t necessarily want to kill. They’ll
come in with their ships and ask for
surrender. They’ll demand that we ac-
cept their new religion and that we for-
swear all other gods. As long as we do
that, and don’t do anything against
their laws, they’ll let us live.”
Your contact snorts. “But look
around you. Are these people going
to surrender totally? Isn’t there going
to be someone who tries to do some-
thing to the thri-kreen? And when
they do, everyone on the Rock will be
dead. The only alternativeto total sur-
render is death, and if anyone fights
back, that means that the Rock didn’t
totally surrender. I learned that from a
friend who was at an outpost that the
thri-kreen “pacified’ a while ago. He
managed to escape, don’t ask me
how. But before he did, he said he
even met the priest-general leading
the mantis forces, 6n his flagship, the
Message Bearer. Tiktitik, his name
was.”
Holy Warrior
When Tiktitik the thri-kreen was re-
united with his people, his first order of
business was to find out where matters
went wrong. According to the religion
under which he was raised, the success
and dominance of the thri-kreenwas pre-
ordained. It was obvious that something
was wrong somewhere, or that someone
lied to him and all his fellow warriors. He
returned to the ancient holy writings to
find where the error lay.
At first, Tiktitik approached this re-
search with a cynical attitude. He knew
that the holy writings weren’t worth the
crystal leaves they were scribed on: his
own experience had shown him that. He
was simply searching for the details of
their fallacy. But, as he continued his re-
search, he began to feel the sweeping
power of those works all over again. And
then, in a little-known apocrypha called
the “Lyric of the Eternal Lotus,” he found
his answer.
There was no fallacy in the holy writ-
ings. Everything was preordained after
all. The error had been made by those
who passed on the teachings of the writ-
ings. There it was, plain as day, the
prophesy that the thri-kreen’s spread
through the stars would be stopped and
reversed. But then, under a new holy
leader, the People of the Celestial Mantis
would spread once more to the stars un-
der the banner of the Mantis God of the
Eternal Lotus. The leader, so the proph-
esy said, was to be “a warrior from the
past.”
Tiktitik was stunned. It seemed obvi-
ous that the prophesy was referring to
him. He was a “warrior from the past,”
and it seemed his duty was obvious.
His rise to pre-eminence among the re-
ligious leaders of the thri-kreen would
seem meteoric in any other race. But the
thri-kreen were used to rapid changes in
their religion. There was very little oppo-
sition to Tiktitiks views; the holy writ-
ings certainly seemed to support every-
thing he said. Within a matter of 4
months, the fleet was assembled and on
its holy mission: to spread the True Word
to the rest of the universe.
As the PCs’ contact explained, the thri-
kreen have no real desire to kill anyone.
If their foes surrender and agree to abide
by the precepts of the Eternal Lotus, they
are left alive. The thri-kreen look on sur-
render as an all-or-nothing affair, how-
ever. If a group-an outpost, a ship or
even a planet-gives its surrender and
then one person in that group trans-
gresses the bounds of that surrender,
then the entire group is considered to
have defaulted, and will be put to death
immediately.
So far, Tiktitik’s fleet has been victori-
ous. Now he has ordered most of his
ships to await him in the Flow while he
takes a small force to deal with the Rock
of Bral. The Rock is of great strategic im-
portance, and he figures it would be bet-
ter to deal with it now than wait until it
can be reinforced.
Note: The thri-kreen have an interest-
ing way of handling parley and negotia-
tion in confrontations. This is common
knowledge throughout the universe, so
the PCs will know it as well. If a single
thri-kreen or a small group approaches
an enemy that massively outnumbers
them, then this individual or group is to
be considered as ambassadors, and
should not be killed. When the negotia-
tion is complete, the ambassadors
should be allowed to return to their force
without hindrance. Killing an ambassa-
dor is one of the worst crimes known to
the thri-kreen. N o surrender will be
asked for or accepted from the group
that committed the crime. The same
works in reverse, of course. If a small
ship-obviously too weak to be consid-
ered an effective attack-were to ap-
proach the thri-kreen fleet, no mantis
warrior would fire on it, because it is ob-
viously a party coming to parley. A ship
large enough to be a threat to any vessel
in the fleet, however, would be consid-
ered to be attacking, and would be de-
stroyed.
Ambassadors
The detachment of the thri-kreen fleet
led by Tiktitik arrives several days earlier
than anticipated, before Prince Andru
makes his escape from the Rock. The
three Leaf-ships that make up the de-
tachment can be seen hanging in space of the sky, and won’t be persuaded other-
near the rock. The thri-kreen fire no wise by anything other than overwhelm-
shots at the Rock. Conversely, none of ing force. As their Intelligence scores
the vessels moored to the docks of Bra1 show, neither is overly bright; they sim-
are ready for immediate reaction. The ply don’t know and won’t believe the thri-
two forces are facing each other, but the kreen’s attitude toward ambassadors.
hostilities have yet to begin.
A small thri-kreen vessel, called a Warfare
Thorn-ship, leaves the fleet and lands at
Prince Andru’s palace. It contains three If the PCs don’t stop Garth and Tur-
thri-kreen ambassadors asking for the geon from killing the thri-kreen ambas-
Rocks surrender. As the PCs will hear sadors, then the war is on. The thri-kreen
quickly through the grape-vine, the will immediately begin to bombard the
prince stalls for time, telling the mantis Rock, beginning with the prince’s castle,
warriors that he must reach consensus but soon “walking” their fire toward the
with his advisors before he can give an docks. Any ships attempting to leave the
answer. The thri-kreen accept this and docks will be immediately engaged.
leave, telling him that they will return in The thri-kreen task force comprises
twelve hours for his final answer. three Leaf-ships,each with a full comple-
While this is going on, the PCs are ment of four Thorn-ships. Details on the
down at the docks. The trajectory of the task force are given below and are also
departing ambassadors’ Thorn-ship will present on the mapsheet.
take the small vessel directly over the
dock at an altitude of about 300 feet. As Thri-Kreen Vessels
the Thorn-ship starts its departure, the
PCs notice movement on a Squid-ship Leaf-Ship
moored nearby. There are two humans Built by: Thri-kreen
on deck, and they’ve just finished load- Used Primarily by: Thri-kreen
ing the Squid-ship’s heavy ballista. Now Tonnage: 70 tons
they’re training the weapon on the de- Hull Points: 70
parting thri-kreen Thorn-ship. Crew: 20165
The PCs have a choice to make. If they Maneuverability
don’t interfere, the men will fire the bal- Class: D
lista, damaging the ambassadors’vessel. Landing-Land: No
The time for negotiation will be over, and Landing-Water: Yes
the thri-kreen fleet will attack. The Armor Rating: 6
Rock’s only hope for survival will be to Saves As: Ceramic
defeat the thri-kreen in battle. (This is Power Type: Crystal throne (see
one of the reasons why it’s important for below)
the PCs to understand about the thri- Ship’s Rating: 4
kreen’s ideas about ambassadors.) Standard Armament:
Alternatively, the PCs can try to stop 1 heavy catapult
the men from firing the ballista. The two Crew: 5
men, named Garth and Turgeon, are 4 heavy ballistas
crewmembers of the Squid-ship. The Crew: 4
heavy ballista is on the forecastle, and is Piercing ram
100 feet away from where the PCs are Cargo: 30 tons
currently standing. The PCs have three Keel Length: 250‘
rounds in which to do something; other- Beam Length: 40‘
wise, Garth and Turgeon will fire.
Garth: AC 10;MV 12;F3;hp 18; #AT 1; Description: As its name implies, the
Dmg by weapon (short sword (1-6). d a g thri-kreen Leaf-ship resembles a long
ger (1-4))Str
; 14, Dex 13, Con 13, Int 8, leaf. There are stationsaround the hull at
Wis 8, Cha 11; AL CN(E); THACO 18. which up to four Thorn-ships can be
Turgeon: AC 10; MV 12; F2; hp 10; docked. The vessels are grown from liv-
#AT 1; Dmg by weapon (short sword (1- ing crystal, in a manner similar to elven
6), dagger(1-4)): Str 12, Dex 12, Con 14, ships. Their color is usually a delicate,
Int 8, Wis 9, Cha 9; AL CN(E); THACO 18. translucent green or yellow. The Leaf-
Neither wears armor. They each carry ships are very resilient.
a short sword and a dagger. They are de- Their source of power is a device that
termined to blow the thri-kreen ship out the thri-kreen call the “crystal throne.” It is
a huge, multifaceted crystal, about 8'
high and 4' wide, formed roughly in the
shape of a wide-armed throne. When a
thri-kreen sits in the throne, it glows with
a pale inner light, and operates as a spell-
jamming helm. The exact nature of its ef-
fect is unknown: it is definitely different
from any other known helm, and might
have come from a source other than the
Arcane. Any thri-kreen can operate the
crystal throne: no spellcasting power is re-
quired. The SR of the ship is determined
by the construction of the throne, not by
any attributes of the individual using it.
There are no spelljamming after-effects.
No race other than the thri-kreen can use
a crystal throne because they don't have
the correct mental architecture.
The design of the interior is slightly
rounded. There are no 90" corners, and
no completely flat planes. Thri-kreen
doors are articulated affairs rather simi-
lar to multi-leaved folding doors. Illumi-
nation comes from the walls, where
light-producing organisms live within
the crystal structure.
Thorn-Ship greek fire. Thorn-ships will frequently
make suicide runs against powerful en-
Built by: Thri-kreen emy vessels, detonating their greek fire
Used Primarily by: Thri-kreen cache on or just before impact.
Tonnage: 3 tons
Hull Points: 3 There are a number of ships docked at
Crew: 116 the Rock, all of which will become in-
Maneuverability volved in the fray: one Squid-ship(SR 3).
Class: B two Wasps (SR 2 and 4), three Tradesmen
Landing-Land: Yes (SR 1,2 and 2), two Damselflies (SR 2 and
Landing-Water: Yes 3), and a stinger-classMosquito (SR 2). In
Armor Rating: 7 addition, the prince has three Tradesmen
Saves As: Ceramic (SR 1, 1 and 2) and a bumble-bee-class
Power Type: Crystal throne Wasp-ship (SR 2) moored at his private
Ship's Rating: 3 docks. Finally, there is (presumably) the
Standard Armament: PCs' vessel, whatever it may be.
1 light ballista These vessels will all engage the thri-
Crew: 1 kreen task force, but in a very haphazard
1 Greek fire projector and disorganized way. Here is an oppor-
Crew: 3 tunity for the PCs to affect the outcome
Cargo: 2 tons of the battle. If they can persuade the
Keel Length: 50' other ship captains to listen to them,
Beam Length: 10' they might be able to coordinate the de-
Description: The Thorn-ship is a tiny fensive action a little better. (This is a
open ship that acts as a screen vessel and good opportunity for role-playing.)
fighter for a thri-kreen task force. It is In any case, the defense of the Rock
very maneuverable, which partially gives the PCs a chance to get involved in a
makes up for its lack of resilience. large-scale naval engagement. The DM
Thorn-ships carry 1-10 charges of should control all the thri-kreen vessels
and any other ships that haven't put them-
selves under the command of the PCs.
Parley
If they managed to prevent Garth and
Turgeon from destroying the ambassa-
dors’ vessel, the PCs have some time to
figure out an alternative to out-and-out
war. Escape isn’t the best option: the thri-
kreen will attack any vessel trying to
leave the Rock. If the PCs recall their
fairly friendly relationship with Tiktitik,
they might try to parley.
The thri-kreen’s attitude toward am-
bassadors will ensure that the PCs will
not be attacked if they approach the task
force. . . but only if their ship and behav-
ior appear to be non-threatening.For ex-
ample, the ship must be 40 tons or
smaller, with heavy weapons unloaded
and unmanned, and the approach must
be slow. As the PCs’ vessel approaches,
two Thorn-ships will detach from the
flagship Message Bearer and escort the
“ambassadorial” vessel into the midst of
the task force. The crews of the Thorn-
ships will then offer to ferry up to six
“ambassadors” to their leader.
Tilctitilc Again
Tiktitik and his officers will listen po-
litely to almost anything the PCs may
wish to say. They draw the line at overtly
threatening rhetoric and anything that
can be interpreted as derogatory toward
the thri-kreen religion. Tiktitik is a lot
more liberal in that regard then his offi-
cers, however. Should the PCs get onto a
touchy subject, he will recommend that
they continue the conversation in the pri-
vacy of his quarters. As leader, Tiktitik is
normally escorted by two warrior body-
guards; in this case, he will order that
they stand guard outside his door.
Because they saved him from the
Flow, Tiktitik will patiently explain to the
PCs the background behind his current
actions. He honestly wants them to un-
derstand and agree with the necessity. He
will listen to any arguments the PCs can
muster against the jihad, but it will be al-
most impossible to sway him. As Tiktitik
keeps stressing, the “Lyric of the Eternal
Lotus” is incontrovertible, and it tells
him that what he is doing is correct.
This should remind the PCs of some-
thing they found during the adventure
“The Outpost”: a very early rendering of
the “Lyric of the Eternal Lotus.” If they
show it to Tiktitik, he confirms that it is
truly ancient; the language and writing The PCs may be able to convince
style proves it. Unlike later versions of Prince Andru that it was their actions
the Lyric, this copy includes no mention that saved the Rock from bombardment.
of the thri-kreen’s manifest destiny in Andru will, of course, be highly skepti-
space, or any hint at a preordained domi- cal; also, he will definitely not want to
nation of the universe. It is obvious that part with a large reward. The PCs might
any such facets were inserted by later be able to finagle some money out of
copyists or “editors;” as such, these him, however.
facets are neither revealed as truth nor To the populace at large, the PCs will
holy law, and should be ignored. be heroes. Although hero-worship
Although it is hard for Tiktitik to ac- doesn’t fill the coinpurse, it does won-
cept this, he is a strong-willed character ders for the ego. The PCs should be
(as was proven in “Time Capsule”). He seven-day wonders around the Rock. As
will quickly come to the conclusion that well as benefits (free drinks, etc.), this
his actions are wrong. He will immedi- fame has disadvantages. The PCs are
ately cancel the assault on the Rock. If now known, and will probably become
the PCs are unable to convince Tiktitik, the targets of pickpockets, confidence
out of friendship he will give the PCs the men, etc. In addition, their whereabouts
option of leaving the region before his are known-if only for a short time-and
assault on the Rock begins. will be communicated to any recurring
Note: This entire confrontation is a “nemesis” that might be gunning for the
great opportunity for role-playing, both PCS.
by the players and by the DM. If the PCs If the PCs are unable to convince
don’t think of their copy of the Lyric, the Tiktitik to call off his attack, the battle
DM might subtly remind them, maybe by will take place. The PCs have the option
something Tiktitik says (for example, ” I of joining in or not. If they decide to wait
am guided by holy writings. If other holy it out, then the thri-kreen will crush the
writings directed otherwise, my path resistance and take over the Rock-this
would be different. But no. What other will happen “off-stage.”
holy writings are there that I have not Note: If the thri-kreen take over the
read?”). Rock, many of its populace will be con-
PCs whose minds run more toward sidered “cattle” by the thri-kreen.Resist-
confrontation than role-playing might ance will grow and the PCs could
try to assassinateor kidnap Tiktitik. This become part of a resistance movement
will do them no good and considerable to restore Prince Andru’s rule.
harm. The task force will not be dis-
suaded from its goal by Tiktitik’s death.
Thri-kreen do not bargain with kidnap
pers, and do not pay ransoms. As soon as
it becomes apparent that Tiktitik is a
hostage, the other thri-kreen will attack
the PCs and try to kill them all. They will
try not to kill Tiktitik, but if he dies in the
assault then so be it. To thri-kreenminds,
the life of the hostage is secondary to ex-
punging the insult to the entire thri-
kreen race. Tiktitik agrees totally with
this philosophy, and would be disgusted
if his warriors let the kidnappers escape
just to save Tiktitiks life. Either assassi-
nation or kidnapping will immediately
trigger the attack on the Rock.
Concluding the Adventure
If the PCs convince Tiktitik of the error
of his ways, he will leave the Rock and re-
turn home. The thri-kreen will remain a
force in space, but a peaceable one, in-
terested more in exploration than in con-
quest. The thri-kreen threat is over.

Billy Bones
Setting: Wildspace
Party: 4-6 characters, levels 6-8
Ship: Any
Setup
The PCs are approaching a system
that was heavily involved in the Unhu-
man Wars. (Perhaps it was one of the few
ground-based elven outposts that the
goblinoid fleets managed to destroy.)
The PCs may or may not know the his-
tory of the system.
No matter how many times you
may see it, a sunset from space still
has the power to touch the wellspring
of your spirit. As you draw nearer to
the world ahead of you and pass into
its shadow, the system’s star is re-
fracted for a moment by the planet’s
atmosphere. Red and orange flare,
followed by a split second of brilliant
emerald green. Then the planet oc-
cults the star as your ship sails into
darkness.
Thud! Something falls to the deck.
A hard, jagged ball of some white sub-
stance, a little more than two feet
across. It must have been swept up in
your atmosphere envelope. Crack!
Another bounces off your mast before
landing on the stern castle. Two more
strike the rigging: one falls to the
deck, the other remains caught in the
ropes.
As other balls fall around you the
first begins to move. You watch in hor-
ror as it unfolds and stands up. A hu-
man skeleton faces you, a shining
blade in its hand and a sullen red glow
in its empty eye sockets . . .
As described on pages 62 and 63 of
the Lorebook of the Void, during the Un-
human Wars, a standard defensive tactic
used by necromancers was to fold ani-
mated skeletons into small bony balls
and scatter them through space, usually
around their homeworld. These mon-
sters acted like undead “space mines”:
any ship trying to reach the world had a
chance of running into a number of skel-
etons. On falling into the gravity plane of
a ship, the skeletons’ orders were to
board and attack the vessel. The PCs are
unlucky enough to sail through a
forgotten cluster of these “delayed
action undead:’
There are 12 skeletons in the cluster
and they are fairly evenly distributed
over the ship. Six are scattered on deck,
three are in the rigging, and three more
impact on the underside of the ship’s
hull. These latter three will clamber
along the hull and enter the ship
through any open porthole; in the ab-
sence of portholes, they will climb over
the rail and join the fighting on deck in
2-8 rounds. The skeletons will fight until
destroyed.
Skeleton (x12): AC 7; MV 12; HD 1; hp
2,3,3,4,4,5,5,6,6,6,8,8; #AT 1; Dmg
1-6; SD edgedlpiercing weapons inflict
half damage; AL N: THACO 19.
Concluding the Adventure
This is more of a “nuisance encounter”
than anything else (although it can be
used to foreshadow the PCs’ involve-
ment with a world that was central to the
Unhuman Wars).
If the adventurers defeat the skele-
tons (which is entirely likely), there are
no consequences. The monsters have
no treasure or anything else of value.
Should the skeletons defeat the PCs and
their crew, the monsters are unable to
handle the vessel. Depending on cir-
cumstances, the skeleton-infested ship
will either drift aimlessly through the
system, or spiral down toward a planet
as its orbit decays until it burns up or
crashes.
Parasite!
Setting: Wildspace
Party: Any
Ship: Any
Setups
The PCs hear from port authorities
that a certain ship-the Dragonfly
Freebooter-is several days late. There
are rumors of pirate activity in the re-
gion, so port authorities fear the worst.
The PCs are told the Freebooter’s course,
and are asked or hired to find out what
happened to the vessel.
The PCs have an arrangement to
meet a half-elf trader-Eril Leafsong,
captain of the Freebooter-at a particular
port, base or outpost. Leafsong misses
the meeting, however, and the PCs hear
that the Freebooter is long overdue.
While travelling in wildspace, the
PCs stumble upon a Dragonfly drifting in
the void.
The vessel hanging in space ahead of
you is a Dragonfly. At least, it used to
be a Dragonfly.
Now? Several of its legs are miss-
ing, the mainmast is shattered, and
one wing is twisted and torn. Obvi-
ously the small ship ran afoul of some-
thing. You examine the vessel again.
Yes, you think it should still be usable.
No lights show anywhere aboard her.
If the PCs know about Eril Leafsong,
they will recognize this vessel as the
Freebooter by its distinctive paint. Other-
wise, they can read its name off its bow.
As the PCs draw closer, they can see
more details of the damage to the Drag-
onfly. In addition to the rigging
damage-obviously caused by one or
more impacts from a large creature or
object-there are a number of burn
marks on the hull. These look as though
they might have been caused by larger
versions of magic missiles.
Eril Leafsong
and Crew
Eril Leafsong is a half-elf well known
for his success in the “small packet
trade” (i.e., smuggling). Apart from his
mild penchant toward defrauding the au-
thorities, he is a scrupulously honest op-
erator: hire him to carry something, and
you can be sure it will get there. For this,
he is well respected in many circles, even
among the authorities (sometimes gov-
ernments, too, need services that are
outside normal channels).
Eril’s wife is a young elven mage
named Rowena Leafsong (following the
customs of her society, Eril took her last
name when they married). She acted as
spelljamming mage for the Freebooter.
The rest of the vessel’s crew of seven
was filled out with hirelings-but only
those hirelings who Eril was sure he
could trust.
The final crewmember of the Free-
booter was Rowena’s pet. a tiny capuchin
monkey she named Flowerbud. While
many domesticated creatures,even cats,
have difficulty adapting to spacefaring
life, Flowerbud has taken to the alien en.
vironment with no trouble at all.
The Freebooter
The Freebooter is smaller than the ves-
sels preferred by some smugglers, but it
suits Eril’s needs admirably. He has mod-
ified the vessel for more maneuverabil-
ity, both by increasing the ship’s rigging
and by stripping away inessential weight.
The Freebooter thus has MC B and AR 10
(Eril Leafsong believes the old saying
about “he who turns and runs away lives
to fight another day”). Leafsong is not a
total pacifist, however: the Freebooter is
armed with a turret-mounted light bal-
lista on the upper deck.
Apart from these changes, the Free-
booter matches the statistics given for
the Dragonfly in the SPELWAMMER”
boxed set. Use the ship plans on the back
of the “Dragonfly” card. All areas in the
following description correspond to the
numbered areas on the plans. The ship is
in total darkness. The vessel’s air enve-
lope is fresh.
tacked the ship (details on the battle will
Upper Deck
~~
Whatever scrape the good ship
Freebooter was in, it made it through
in barely one piece. Here the railing is
smashed; there, the deck has a hole
burned in it. (Dropped lantern? Tiny
fireball?) And in several places there
are blood stains. Some look human,
some most definitely do not. In gen-
eral, the mess has been partially
cleaned up, and minor repairs have
been made. But in most cases the
damage is enough to require a refit, or
repairs that can’t be made while un-
derway.
What was that? Something shiny
caught your eye, over there, imbed-
ded in that broken piece of railing.
You pull it free from the wood and turn
it over and over in your hand. It’s a
tooth, a sharp tooth that might have
come from the mouth of a shark. . .
The tooth is from a skawer that at-
come later). A character with a profi-
ciency in animal lore can make a profi-
ciency check to recognize it.
The rack used to hold ballista bolts is
empty.
Lower Deck
1. Bridge.
Death! The smell is instantly recog-
nizable as it catches in the back of
your throat. Blood, and a hint of cor-
ruption.
Just ahead of the mainmast is a
large chair that could only be the ves-
sel’s minor helm. And draped across it
are two male figures. Both are dead,
there’s no doubt about it. The larger
one has his fingers still sunk into the
throat of the other, while a knife-still
clutched in the smaller man’s dead
hand-protrudes from his back, just
below the left shoulder blade.
The two men have been dead a couple
of days-about the length of time that
theFreebooter has been overdue. Neither
has anything of value or interest on his
person. From their clothes, these two
can be identified as two of Eril Leaf-
song’s crewmen.
2. Captain’s Cabin.
~~
More bodies. Two of them, one on the
cot, the other slumped over the small
desk. Both dead.
The figure on the bed is an elven
woman, beautiful even in death. She’s
been laid out neatly, with hands
crossed on her breast, and her clothes
arranged to conceal the fatal wound in
her chest.
The man sitting at the desk has
fallen forward, face down on the
wooden surface. And no wonder: a
crossbow bolt protrudes from the
base of his skull.
The man at the desk is Eril Leafsong,
the woman Rowena. PCs who’ve heard
about Eril before will recognize him from
his description; others can infer his iden-
tity from other facts.
Rowena Leafsong has nothing of value
on her body. Eril has a short sword on his
belt; from the blood remaining on the
blade, it’s apparent that it was he who
slew his wife.
Eril was killed while making out the
ship’s log. The leather-bound book is
blood-stained, but still legible. Most of
the entries deal with the day-to-daymat-
ters of navigating a ship in wildspace.
Only the last three are of interest:
“Day 16:/heneuer seen or heard the like
of this before. The ship was attacked by
creatures that don’t normally attack: six
skauuers-not the uoid uariety, either,
but the cowardly gray-and a young ra-
diant dragon barely fifteen feet long.
They came in with no warning and liter-
ally began to tear the ship apart. I tried
yelling to the dragon-they often talk if
addressed-but it acted as though it
didn‘t hear or care. We fought them off,
of course, but we had to slay euey last
one of them to do it. And it cost us Dauitt:
the dragon snatched him from the deck,
took him outside the ship’s air enuelope,
and killed him. We fired euery ballista
bolt we had-the dragon took fiue-and
then we were down to crossbows and
hand weapons. Thank the gods I decided
to hire Kerin after all. That child is a dead
shot with a crossbow. Lane and Willik
had to finish off,the last skauuer with
daggers as it lay thrashing on the decks. I
still can’t understand it. Skauuers and
dragons do not act that way.
Day 18:Repairs underway. But I‘m trou-
bled. Ever since the battle, Rowena has
been looking at me strangely. Looks full
of scorn. Oh, she tries to act normally.
And when I yell at her she denies it and
cries the prettiest fake tears. Of all the
mistakes /he made in a life full of mis-
takes, she must be the worst.
Day 19: I haue remedied the mistake. I
did as my conscience urged me, as the
uoice in my head told me, and I killed her.
How beautiful she looks now, lying on
my bed. And how silent. Noise outside
the door. Perhaps Lane and the others
should be so silent. Perh-

A small chest under the cot contains
some of Eril’s and Rowena’s valuables: a
velvet bag containing 45 pp (various
types of currency), another bag contain-
ing five small but brilliant diamonds(500
gp base value), a gold ring encrusted
with tiny garnets (250 gp), and a small di-
amond pendant (750 gp). A rack on the
bulkhead contains another short sword,
two daggers, a heavv crossbow and a
dozen bolts.
3 . Crew Cabin.
As you pull the door open, something
slumps out and collapses at your feet.
Or, rather, someone. From his dress
you recognize him a s another mem-
ber of the crew. A big, burly man, very
strong and resistant to punishment.
H e had to be. H e took two bolts
from a heavy crossbow-both still
project from his back-and he still
managed to drag himself across the
room, sword in hand, before he finally
collapsed.
The cabin has hooks for five ham-
mocks, most of which have been cut
down with wild sword-cuts.
From the stains on the floor, the PCs
can tell that the big crewman was hit the
first time when he was at the far end of
the cabin. The bowman was probably
standing in the doorway.
There is nothing of value in the cabin,
other than the long sword in the dead
man’s hand.
If it seems a s though the PCs might
leave the ship without exploring the
cargo hold, read the following:
Sound! A light scrabbling noise com-
ing from the hold. Somebody moving
around but trying to be quiet about it?
Somebody with a heavy crossbow,
perhaps?
4. Cargo Hold.
Carefully, you open the door. . . And
something small and grey hurtles at
The creature that is attacking the PCs
is Rowena Leafsong’s pet capuchin mon-
key, Flowerbud. As soon as the door is
open, it attacks the nearest PC. The crea-
ture will not check morale, and fights un-
til slain. It also gets a bonus of + 1 to hit
and to damage due to ferocity (these
have already been factored into the sta-
tistics below).
Capuchin Monkey: AC 8; MV 9; HD
1 + 1; hp 3; #AT 1; Dmg 2; AL N; THACO
19.
Eril Leafsong’s cargo for this trip was
information, which he kept in his head.
Thus the cargo hold is empty except for a
body huddled in a dark corner. The body
is that of a youth, no older than 16-it’s
Kerin, the one Eril praised in the log-
and h e still cradles his heavy crossbow,
cocked and loaded, in his lap. A quiver
on his belt holds eight more bolts. The
youth has a deep wound in his side that
was caused by a slashing weapon.
The Freebooter and the
Parasites
The madness that broke out aboard
the Freebooter was caused by the same
things that made the skawers and the ra-
diant dragon act in such atypical man-
ner: parasites known as Death Shades.
Unfortunately for Eril Leafsong-and,
indirectly, for the PCs-a few death
shades made it to this shell. An explora-
tion vessel from an infested shell entered
this sphere, bringing contagion with it:
11 members of the crew were hosts to
death shades. As the death shades were
hungry, they triggered rages in their
hosts, and a full-scale fight broke out. In
the melee, somebody dropped a lantern
into the powder locker-where the
smoke powder for the bombards was
stored-and blew up the ship, killing the
entire crew instantly.
During the 5 minutes in which the
death shades could survive without a
host, a number of skawers-which had
been following the ship hoping for
scraps, etc.-came nosing through the
wreckage. Some of the death shades
were able to transfer to skavvers. Later,
these skavvers attacked a young radiant
dragon, a t great detriment to them-
selves. The dragon killed many of the
skavvers, but was itself infected by a
death shade.
It was at this time that the Freebooter
happened along. The remaining skav-
vers and the dragon all attacked the ship,
and death shades infected Eril Leafsong
and his crew a s their hosts were killed.
Only Rowena Leafsong escaped infec-
tion (but it did her little good).
3
In a rage, two crewmembers killed
each other on the bridge. Eril slew his
wife, and was in turn slain by Kerin, the
I
crossbow-wielding youth. Kerin put two
bolts into the remaining crewman, but
his victim was resilient enough to strike
the youth with his long sword before col-
lapsing. Mortally wounded, the youth re-
treated t o the cargo hold, where he
subsequently died.
Throughout all this ruckus, Flowerbud
the capuchin monkey had been hiding
out in the hold. When Kerin died, “his”
death shade-the last surviving one of
the creatures-transferred to the mon-
key. Thus infected, the monkey will at-
tack any living creature that comes near
it-in particular, the PCs. When Flower-
bud is killed, the death shade will trans-
fer to the nearest (and most powerful)
PC.
Concluding the Adventure I
This is a particularly nasty little adven-
ture to throw at overconfident PCs. Play-,
ers who are good at problem-solving
might make a good guess at what hap-
pened on board the Freebooter-at least
as far a s suspecting some kind of conta-
gious insanity-and might consider the
possibility that some of them might have
become infected as well. Less thoughtful
players might never figure matters out.
(In this case, a kindly DM might intro-
duce the PCs to a sage who’s “heard of
matters such a s this, in other shells,” and
point them in the right direction.)
Unless the PCs d o something about it,
their infected comrade will continue to
fly into homicidal rages. Once he’s man-
aged to kill 40 hit dice or levels of crea-
tures, the shade will reproduce by binary
fission, and the new shade will infest an-
other victim. Theoretically, the PCs
could spread contagion to a whole world
or shell. If a wish spell is cast on the in-
fected PC before that time, however, the
entire shell is saved.
(Note to the DM: Choose the PC to be
infected with some care. By preference,
choose a PC run by the player who is best
at role playing. Some players might not
enjoy having a character who suffers re-
curring fits of madness.)
 The following two adventures, “ X and
“Cain” are designed to tie up the “Letters
of Marque” story which initiated the PCs’
pirate hunt. The PCs can continue their
hunt for pirates, of course. They will be
doing so without official sponsorship
and their rewards will be only the pirates’
goods.
These two adventures should be
played in order. The first is a simple
space engagement; the second is more
intricate, involving some elements of in-
trigue.
X ters of marque, and probably mark them
Setting: Wildspace
Party: 4-6 characters, levels 8 +
Ship: Any
Setups
The PCs receive a message from
Jasson, the “Pots” member they met in
“Letters of Marque.” The man wants to
arrange a meeting.
Upon meeting with Wallis to collect
rewards for your efforts, he stalls in pay.
ing you. He stammers that he can’t pay
until you meet with Jasson at a pre-
arranged time and place. You set the
meeting up, anxious to remedy this de-
layed payment.
Jasson looks older than he did
when you first met him . . . or at least
more tired. His eyes are sunken, and
his face is grey. But his voice is still
strong when he speaks to you.
“I knew it would happen,” he says, “it
was just a matter of time. Do you re-
member your letters of marque urged
you to make war on ships belonging to
the Tenth Pit? This was ‘kindly re-
quested’ by Prince Andru, and he has
now exhausted all his patience in deal-
ing with the Tenth Pit. Now he has a tar-
get for you. To set your minds at rest, I
have checked: the ship truly does be-
long to the Tenth Pit.”
He passes you a sheet of parch-
ment. “Here is the information about
the ship. It is a Tradesman, the Night
Passage, and here is its course infor-
mation. You are to engage the Night
Passage, scuttle her, and bring back
her cargo. The prince instructs me to
tell you”-and here the old man’s face
crinkles in disgust-“there is no need
to burden yourself with prisoners.”
Jasson’s parchment shows the pro-
jected course of the Night Passage, com-
plete with times and waypoints. (This
course takes the ship through the Rock
of Bral’s crystal shell, but not too close to
the Rock itself.) It also indicates an ideal
spot for you to engage the ship, a region
well off frequented spaceways. The
prince will pay you a bounty of 1,000 gp
for the destruction of the Night Passage,
with an additional 2,000 gp to be paid for
its cargo. Jasson makes it clear that to
disregard this “request” from Prince An-
dru will immediately terminate their let-
for “unofficial” persecution at a later
date.
The Night Passage
As Jasson explains, the Night Passage
is an unmodified Tradesman equipped
with a minor helm (refer to the ship plans
on the card in the SPELWAMMER”
boxed set). The vessel is armed with one
light catapult and one medium ballista. It
is captained by a half-elven initiate of the
Tenth Pit named Leratan, an individual
wanted for murder and assault on a num-
ber of worlds. His crew is a band of half-
orc “war brothers.” They have sworn an
oath to each other and to Leratan; al-
though they are not official members of
the Tenth Pit, they are sympathetic to its
ends and totally loyal to Leratan.
Leratan’s helmsman is a half-orc cleric
named Gornat. With him in the helm, the
Night Passage has an SR of 3.
Leratan: AC 2; MV 12; F7; hp 33; #AT
312; Dmg by weapon (long sword (1.8).
wheel lock pistol (1-4)); Str 13, Dex 12,
Con 14, Int 13, Wis 10, Cha 15; AL LE;
THACO 14. Leratan wears bracers o f de-
fense AC2, and is armed with a long
sword and wheel lock pistol (enough am-
munition for 6 shots).
Gornat: AC 8; MV 12; P7;hp 32; #AT 1;
Dmg byweapon(mace(1-6)); Str 13, Dex
11, Con 11, Int 10, Wis 13, Cha 10; AL
N(E); THACO 16. Gornat wears leather
armor and carries a horseman’s mace.
Because he has been operating the helm,
he has no spells.
Crewmen (half-orcs;x6): AC 8; MV 12;
F1; hp 3, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9; #AT 1; Dmg by
weapon (short sword (1-6)); A L NE;
THACO 20. All wear leather armor and
are armed with short swords.
The Night Passage is not expecting se-
rious trouble. The very fact that its c a p
tain is affiliated with the Tenth Pit usually
protects it: very few people want to risk
the vengeance of the Tenth Pit.
Its current mission is to carry a supply
of smoke powder to one of the Pit’s out-
posts on a distant world. Unfortunately,
Prince Andru doesn’t know this. His in-
formation source informed him that the
ship would be carrying a powerful magic
item that he wants for himself. The plans
were changed at the last moment; an-
other ship took charge of the item, while
Leratan was ordered to deliver the
smoke powder.
Tactics
The Night Passage isn’t equipped to
engage a larger ship, and it is sailing with
barely the minimum crew. Thus it will
choose flight over combat if the option is
given. Leratan and his crewmembers
know that a rather grim form of justice
awaits them if they’re captured, and they
don’t like the prospect. They would
rather die cleanly in battle than suffer for
months in jail before dying in an execu-
tion pit. Thus, they won’t surrender, and
will fight to the death.
If it’s obvious that the Night Passage is
going to be taken, either Leratan or a
member of his crew will g o down to the
hold. There he will strike a light with his
tinderbox and detonate the smoke pow-
der. The hold contains 200 charges of
smoke powder, enough for 20 bombard
rounds. This is more than enough to de-
stroy the Tradesman and kill all aboard
her. (The explosion will inflict 200d2
points of damage, which equates to 20d2
points of hull damage to the Tradesman.)
The fireball will also inflict 1-10 hull
points on any vessel sharing the same air
envelope (save for half damage). Any
character exposed to the fireball but not
aboard the Night Passage receives 4d6
points of damage (save for half damage).
Concluding the Adventure
The prince will be irked by the fact that
he didn’t get his magic item. Although
he’ll pay the bounty for the Tradesman’s
destruction, he’ll always harbor nagging
suspicions that the PCs are lying to him
about the item that he wanted. (This will
more than counterbalance any goodwill
the PCs earned from the prince in “Ji-
had!”)
More to the point, however, the Tenth
Pit will learn through sources that it was
the PCs who destroyed their vessel. The
Tenth Pit has a reputation to uphold, and
letting a bunch of two-bit adventurers get
away with such a slight would seriously
tarnish their reputation. To ensure retribu-
tion, the Tenth Pit decides to turn to . . .
Cain
Setting: Wildspace
Party: 4-6 characters, levels 8 +
Ship: Galleon or larger
Setup
This adventure is designed to follow
directly from “X.”The PCs have returned
to the Rock of Bra1 to collect their
bounty, and perhaps to repair their ship
and rest.
Vengeance
Through channels, officers of the
Tenth Pit have discovered that the PCs
are responsible for the recent loss of the
Night Passage. Punishment of a rather
drastic nature is obviously required.
Rather than handle it themselves, how-
ever, the Tenth Pit has decided to call in
an outside expert: Cain.
As well as being a pirate, Cain is an ac-
complished assassin and leader of assas-
sins. In fact, he makes more money
through the brokerage of death than he
does through direct piracy. Cain has ac-
cepted the contract against the PCs.
He’s decided to bring about their de-
mise in an indirect manner, at the same
time perhaps destroying someone who
he has always considered an enemy and
a threat: Torgan Betz (introduced in
“Small Package Trade”).
For his first move against the PCs,
Cain has hired four rough dockside “al-
leybashers” who sometimes handle vari-
ous “muscle” assignments. He doubts
very much that they’ll be tough enough
to take out the PCs. If they do, all well
and good; if not, there’s always step two.
“Alleybashers” (x4): AC 8; MV 12; F3/
T4; hp 23, 25, 27, 31; #AT 1; Dmg by
weapon (short sword (1-6), dagger (1.4));
thiefski1ls:PP 15%,OL40%,F/RT15%,
MS 60%. HS 35%, DN 15%. CW 90%,
RL 0%; AL NE; THACO 18. The alley-
bashers are armed with short swords and
daggers, and wear leather armor con-
cealed under normal clothing. They are a
rough and belligerent lot, tending to-
ward bullying behavior, but dangerous
all the same.
Through Cain, the alleybashers know
where the PCs are staying on the Rock,
and when they’re planning to leave. They
will then choose the best time to try to as-
sassinate the PCs. (This will probably in-
volve sneaking on board their ship or
into their boarding house room at night.)
The alleybashers are hired blades only,
and have no personal animosity against
the PCs. Thus they’ll certainly surrender
if it seems that the fight is going against
them. Under even the slightest pressure,
they’ll babble everything they know
about the person who hired them.
The problem is, they don’t know who
hired them, although they think they do.
Cain did the hiring through intermedi-
aries. During one of the meets, one of
these intermediaries “accidentally” let
slip the name Betz. The alleybashers
know of Torgan Betz, and assume that it
was he who hired them.
Torgan Betz
Cain isn’t the only person with far-
reaching sources of information, of
course. As soon as he hears about what
happened, Betz makes his move.
The PCs receive a message delivered
by an urchin. The urchin “don’t know
nuffin” about who gave him the mes-
sage, just that he received one copper
piece and would receive another after de-
livery.
The message is written in a hand the
PCs have seen before. It reads:
“Belieue me when I tell you I haue no
quarrel with you. You may hold bad feel-
ings towardme, but /assure you they are
not reciprocated. Ours was purely a
1
business arrangement, with no personal
animosity inuolued. Now it appears that
someone tries to manipulate us all. I
would haue that stopped. If you are o f
like mind, meet me at midnight in the
graueyard ouerlooking Lake Bral, where
I will haue some important insights for
you. I will come alone to proue m y good
earnest.
Torgan Betz”
If the PCs ignore this letter, Betz will
send two more similar missives, urging
them to meet him at the same place. If
they ignore the third letter, Betz will
leave them to their fate.
Throughout all this, Cain will send the
occasional assassination team after the
PCs. These will be similar to the one de-
scribed earlier, and all will be similarly
“programmed’ to implicate Betz. One of
these teams may eventually succeed; al-
ternatively, Betz might eventually be
forced to kill the PCs to protect himself.
In either case, Cain will be satisfied.
If the PCs continue to search for him,
Betz will continue to send them mes-
sages like the first letter, trying to con-
vince them to lay off and leave him
alone. Each letter will be less subtle, un-
til he tells the PCs outright that Cain is in-
volved. (This gives the DM a way of
“debugging” the adventure if the PCs
just aren’t going after Cain.)
The Meet
Despite his claim in the letter, Betz has
no intention of wandering alone into
what could be a killing ground. He has
selected two back-ups from his multitu-
dinous contacts, and gets them into posi-
tion several hours before the time of the
meet. The back-ups are a brothedsister
team named Waldrin and Melana.
Waldrin: AC 7; MV 12: F6; hp 35; #AT
1; Dmg by weapon (light crossbow (1-4),
short sword (1-6)); Str 13, Dex 15, Con
13, Int 12, Wis 10, Cha 11; AL N; THACO
15. He wears studded leather armor and
is equipped with light crossbow (12
bolts) and short sword. Waldrin is spe-
cialized with the light crossbow, and so
fires once per round.
Melana: AC 7; MV 12: F7; hp 44; #AT
3/2;Dmg by weapon (heavy crossbow (2-
5), short sword(]-6)); Str 14, Dex 12, Con
12, Int 13, Wis 10, Cha 13; AL N; THACO
14. She wears studded leather armor and
is equipped with heavy crossbow and
short sword. Melana is specialized with
the heavy crossbow, and so fires once
per round.
Betz has issued these two a potion of
inuisibility each, and has ordered them to
hide on one of the ledges overlooking
Lake Bra1 (these can be reached by stair-
ways leading down from the graveyard).
Invisibly, the two archers are to sneak
back up the stairway at midnight and
take up positions to cover Betz when he
arrives. They have orders not to kill the
PCs unless there’s no other option. Their
duty issimply to disrupt any ambush that
the PCs might be laying, and to give Betz
a chance to escape. (If the PCs capture ei-
ther bowman, they’ll be able to learn de-
tails of this order. This should set their
minds to rest that no ambush was in-
tended.)
Betz plans to arrive several minutes
late for the meet. He expects the PCs to
have the gates to the graveyard covered,
so he enters the area by another route:
over the southeast wall where it stops at
the cliff over Lake Bral. As an additional
precaution, Betz uses a ring of invisibility
to cover his movements. When he lo-
cates the PCs, he removes the ring and
greets them. Should the meet be a trap,
Betz will don his ring and escape while
his “hired bows” cover him.
When Betz has announced himself to
the PCs, he will quickly tell them what’s
going on.
ring of truth in his words. “The assas-
sins did not come from me,” he tells
you. “As I said in the letter, I have no
animosity toward you. The business
with the package was just that: busi-
ness. Where is my profit in hunting
you down now? This is the truth.”
If the PCs ask who sent the killers, read
the following:
“Ofcourse I know who sent them,”
Betz snorts. “It was Cain. You know
the name? Cain the pirate, Cain the
assassin. I believe you recently de-
stroyed a ship belonging to the Tenth
Pit, correct? The Pit hired Cain to
eliminate you. And Cain, cunning one
that he is, decided to eliminate me as
well, through you. That is the extent
of my involvement in all of this.”
Betz has said all he wants to say, and
IOWtries toleave. If the PCs try to detain
him by force, he dons his ring and calls
for covering fire from his bowmen. If the
PCs ask him where they can find Cain,
however, read the following:
“Cain?” Betz says over his shoulder.
“You can find him at the Barre Sinis-
ter. Where else? Ask at the docks.
Someone will tell you.”
And with that Betz takes his leave.
The PCs have never heard of the Barre
Sinister before, but others have.
Through judicious questioning of the
docks low-life scum and the distribution
of hard cash, the PCs can find out some
details. (This is a great opportunity for
role-playing.)
The Barre Sinister is a “pirates’ bar”:
an establishment that caters almost ex-
clusively to the “wolves of the space-
ways.” It is located on a tiny asteroid in an
out-of-the-way system, and is a good
place to hire a crack crew of seasoned
sailors, if you think you can trust them.
It’s also a very good place to get killed if
your motives aren’t what you say they
are. The PCs can confirm that Cain is a
frequent patron of the Barre Sinister.
The existence of the bar is well-known
to law enforcement agencies in many
shells. There’s nothing against the law
about running a bar, but its clientele de-
mand the attentions of the law. A full-
scale raid would lead to too much
bloodshed, much of it on the side of the
law enforcement agencies. Also, if the
bar were shut down, the pirates would
find another haunt, maybe one that the
law enforcement agencies knew nothing
about. At least now they can keep an eye
on the comings and goings of some pi-
rates. For these reasons, the Barre Sinis-
ter is left to its own devices.
The Barre Sinister
The Barre Sinister is a small, two-story
building located on a tiny asteroid no
more than 300 feet in diameter. The
building is ugly, built from rough-
dressed blocks of asteroid stone. It has
no windows and only two doors. A contin-
ual light spell illuminates a sign on its
roof that reads “Barre Sinister.” Docks
extend from the asteroid along the grav-
ity plane, to which 1-4 ships are tied.
When the PCs approach the Barre Sinis-
ter, Cain’s black-painted Hammership-
the Rampage-is moored here. His crew
is all aboard; only Cain is ashore, negoti-
ating with a representative of the Long
Fangs. The Rampage is ready to get un-
derway at a moment’s notice.
The building is lit throughout by small
disks of metal mounted in the ceiling,
continual light cast on each. The ceilings
are 10 feet high unless otherwise stated.
Refer to the map on the inside cover.
First Floor
1. Barroom.
The room is surprisingly clean. The ta-
bles bear the usual carved initials, but
the long bar itself is unmarked. To either
side of the large double doors are en-
closed booths for more private conversa-
tion. The curtainsthat close these booths
are backed with light chain mail (only the
best for the Barre Sinister’s customers).
This gives the occupants a - 4 bonus to
AC against any swords thrust or projec-
tiles shot through the curtains.
Behind the bar stands the co-owner/
operator of the Barre Sinister. No one
knows his real name; everyone just calls
him “Raven:’
Raven: AC 6; MV 12; F81W5; hp 51;
#AT 3/2: Dmg by weapon (club (1-6)) or
spell; Str 15, Dex 13, Con 13, Int 16, Wis
11, Cha 12;spells: cantrip, magic missile,
shield, wall offog; web (x2);Melfs minute
meteors; AL N(E);THACO 13. He is a tall,
well-muscled half-elf with a wicked scar
down one cheek. He wears a ring ofpro-
tection + 4 and a ring of human influence,
and he carries a wand of magic missiles
(32 charges). Beneath the bar is a club.
Raven won’t put up with any trouble in
his bar, and he’ll be quite willing to kill if
that’s the best way to stop it. Everyone
knows this, and so there are no brawls in
crew. If they do bring along the crew,
however, then the whole thing looks like
decanter is worth 50 gp, the brandy 150
gp. The room is unoccupied.
I
the Barre Sinister. (The docks and the a raid and everyone will react as such.
rest of the asteroid are another matter al- Each of the 1-4 nondescript ships 7 . Raven’s Study.
together.) moored at the docks will be manned by The walls are lined with bookshelves.
Cain and a half-orc named Barabas are 3 officers and 7 crew, who will have the There is a locked desk in one corner, on
in discussion at a table near the bar. statistics above. When they see the raid, which Raven has cast the spell alarm. The
Cain: AC 2;MV 12;F13;hp 95;#AT 2; they will leave their ships and engage upper locked drawer contains bar re-
Dmg by weapon (long sword (1-8), wheel the PCs’ crew. cords. The lower drawer’s lock is pro-
lock pistol(1-4)); Str 14, Dex 12,Con 16, Cain’s ship, the Rampage is also tected by a poison needle trap (3-30
Int 13,Wis 13,Cha 15;AL NE; THACO 8. moored at the docks. His crew is de- points of damage; save vs. poison for half
Cain is a tall, slender man who always scribed in detail in the section “The Ram- damage). Inside are some of Raven’s bar
dresses in tight-fitting black leathers, page.” They too will join the fray. (If this receipts (the rest are stashed off the aste-
usually with a red bandanna at his throat. happens, the PCs will probably be in seri- roid): 27 pp. 250 gp. The drawer also
His most memorable features are his ous trouble.) contains Raven’s spell book (alarm, can-
cold grey eyes. He wears bracers of de- trip, magic missile, shield, Tenserk float-
fense AC2 and carries a long sword + 2 2. Storage Room. ing disc, wall o f fog; flaming sphere,
and two wheel lock pistols (ammunition There are boxes of earthenware plates stinking cloud, web (x2); Melfs minute
for a total of 8 shots). and mugs stacked under the staircase. meteors). The room is unoccupied.
Barabas: AC 7 ; MV 12; F6;hp 31;#AT Some ropes hang on the wall.
312;Dmg by weapon (bastard sword (1 -8/ 8. Dressing RoomlAntechamber.
2-8))+ 1 Str bonus; Str 17, Dex 12,Con 3. Kitchen. One wall is totally taken up by a large
16, Int 12, Wis 10, Cha 10; AL NE; Links of disreputable-looking sau- mirror. The other walls are taken up by
THACO 14. Barabas is a powerfully-built sages and ropes of spices hang from the wardrobes. The clothes inside are of fine
half-orc wearing studded leather armor ceiling. A rancid-smelling stew bubbles quality. The room is unoccupied.
and packing a bastard sword, with which in a cauldron over the fire. The room is
he has specialization. occupied by a young cook. Although her 9. Raven’s Room.
Unless they are well disguised, Cain clothes are dirty and her hair matted, she The decor is surprisingly opulent, con-
will recognize the PCs immediately when is very beautiful. sidering the locale. There are fine car-
they enter the barroom. He will yell Cook: AC 10;MV 12;0-level; hp 3;#AT pets on the floor and the dark stone walls
“Cover me!” to Barabas and make a 1; Drng by weapon (knife (1-3)); AL N: are covered with tapestries. The bed is
break for the door. Barabas will do his THACO 20. The girl will be terrified of large and very comfortable. There are
best to cover his escape, but won’t give anyone who bursts in . . . but not too ter- hints of feminine presence (pots of
his life for Cain. Cain knows the fate rified to snatch up a kitchen knife and de- makeup on the dresser and a silk night-
awaiting him if he’s captured; if he can’t fend herself if necessary. gown on the bed). The room is unoccu-
escape, he’ll fight to the death. pied.
Although Raven doesn’t care one way 4. Pantry.
or another what happens to Cain, he’ll This is where the bar’s food stocks and Escape!
certainly get in the act if it looks as beer supplies are stored. There are three
though a fight is going to break out. Al- large tuns of ale, plus boxes and sacks of Cain knows his way around the Barre
though there are no other members of foodstuffs. Sinister, and will use that knowledge to
Cain’s crew present, there are a number escape from the PCs. His goal is to get
out of the building and back to his ship. If
of other sailors in the bar, and they defin- Second Floor Cain gets back to his ship, he immedi-
itely know who Cain is. If they think that
they can overpower the PCs, the other 5. Cook’s Room. ately casts off and tries to put some dis-
sailors will get into the fray; if the PCs The room contains a cot and a ward- tance between him and the PCs. Should
look too tough, they’ll just stay put and robe. The clothes in the wardrobe are of they follow in their ship, he will estimate
watch. poor quality. The room looks as though it their strength. If their vessel is too power-
There are 12 other sailors in the bar- hasn’t been used much recently. The ful, he’ll continue his flight; otherwise,
room. Four of them are officers, while room is unoccupied. he’ll turn and attack.
eight are crew.
Officer (x4): AC 10; M V 12;F4;hp 20, 6. Meeting Room.
Occasionally, Raven must meet with
The Rampage
23,29,30; #AT 1; Drng by weapon (short
important representatives of various The Rampage is a standard-
sword (1-6).dagger (1-4)); A L N(E);
THACO 17. concerns. It is partially the results of configuration Hammership. No modifi-
Crew (x8): AC 10; M V 12:F2;hp 6,6, these meetings that have let him stay in cations have been made to the deck
plans, the hull or the rigging. Cain has
7,7,9,12,14,15;#ATl;Dmgbyweapon business. The room contains a large ta-
(short sword, dagger); AL N(E); THACO ble and six straight-backed chairs. added some additional weaponry, how-
Against one wall is a sideboard contain- ever. The Rampage’s total firepower
19. comprises the standard weaponry for a
It’s likely that the PCs have entered ing 10 crystal glasses (each worth 25 gp).
the bar alone, without the rest of their Atop it is a decanter of fine brandy; the Hammership but includes two bombards

6iR
(crew 3), each placed on opposite sides
of the main deck. The ship has 60 hull
points, and an SR of 5. It is equipped with
a major helm. The magazine contains
enough powder and shot for 20 bombard
rounds. For deck plans, refer to the
“Hammership” card found in the
SPELWAMMER” boxed set.
The Crew
Cain’s second-in-command is a huge
powerful human named Tront, while his
spelljamming mage is a female half-elf
named Elana. His crew of 45 is filled out
by 42 crack human sailors.
Tront: AC 5; MV 9; F9; hp 66; #AT 312;
Dmg by weapon (two-handed sword (1-
lo), dagger (1-4)) +6 Str bonus; Str
18(00), Dex 12, Con 17, Int 12, Wis 8,
Cha 13; AL N(E); THACO 9. He wears
chain mail and carries a two-handed
sword.
Elana: AC 10; MV 12;W10; hp 23; #AT
1; Dmg by weapon (dagger (1.4)); Str 10,
Dex 11, Con 9, Int 16, Wis 12, Cha 12;
spells: none; AL N(E);THACO 17. Elana
wears no armor and carries only a dag-
ger. Because of spelljamming after-
effects, she has no spells. She will not
leave the helm unless she’s forced to.
Crew (x42): AC 8; MV 12; F2; hp 2-20;
#AT 1; Dmg by weapon (long sword (1-8),
wheel lock pistol (1-4) or light crossbow
(1-4), dagger(lS4));ALLN(E); THACO 19.
The crewmen all wear studded leather ar-
mor. Ten are armed with wheel lock pis-
tols (4 shots each) and daggers; fifteen
are armed with light crossbows and dag-
gers; the rest carry long swords and dag-
gers.
Tactics
Cain is a skilled and experienced cap-
tain, so he will use his ship and weapons
with top efficiency. He trusts his crew’s
abilities when it comes to boarding
actions, so he will definitely ram, grap-
ple, and board a smaller ship. If the PCs
have a larger vessel, he will use his
ranged weapons to attempt to cripple
them before boarding. If the fight looks
as though it’s going against him, he’ll cut
and run.
Cain’s crew have a morale of 14. They
are loyal to their captain, but won’t die
for him. Cain knows this and accepts it.
He also knows that capture will lead to
imprisonment (definitely) and execution
(eventually), neither of which particu.
lady entice him. For himself, then, he
prefers death to capture.
If his ship has been boarded and it
looks as though all is lost, Cain will go to
the magazine and strike a light, detonat-
ing the powder. In addition to killing him,
this will inflict 2d10 hull points of dam-
age to the Rampage. Anyone within 20’
of the magazine in the cargo hold must
save vs. magic or suffer 2-20 points of
damage from concussion and heat.
Since Cain was “between engage-
ments,” the Rampage has little booty
aboard it. Cain’s personal treasure,
locked in a poison-needle trapped chest
in his cabin, comprises 20 pp. 250 gp.
five rubies (1,000 gp value each), a
diamond-studded circlet (3,500 gp). a
scroll (restore air), a bag containing 55
copper “octons,” and a map. This map is
a “wild-card,” pointing the PCs in the di-
rection of anything the DM wants them
to find.
In addition to Cain’s private stash,
Elana’s spell book is cached beneath the
ship’s helm. It contains all spells of first
and second level, plus the following
spells: blink, clairaudience, clairuoyance,
fireball, haste, hold person, illusionary
script, item, lightning bolt, monster sum-
moning /, slow; detect scrying, enerua-
tion, fear, fumble, minor creation,
polymorph self, rainbow pattern, shout,
wizard eye; animate dead, dismissal, fab-
ricate, monster summoning 111, teleport.
Concluding the Adventure
If Cain manages to escape, he will be
an implacable adversary for the PCs.
Whenever the opportunity arises, venge-
ance against the PCs will be his highest
priority. (Thus Cain can become a good
ongoing nemesis.)
If the PCs are victorious, they can col-
lect the bounty for Cain’s destruction
from the Pots. (At this time, Prince
Andru-still irked with the PCs for their
actions in “X”-will revoke their letters
of marque.)
They might consider Torgan Betz to be
unfinished business, but he has dropped
out of sight. (He can certainly return in
later adventures either as an adversary or
an ally.)
The Tenth Pit will certainly hear of the
PCs’ success, and will put some plans in
motion to remove them from the scene.
These plans can be the basis for many fu-
ture adventures.
The Barre Sinister can provide an in-
teresting environment for the PCs to
pick up information and generate adven-
tures.
If Cain defeats the PCs. he won’t kill
them immediately. Although that was his
original intention, now he’s thought of
something better. He secures them in the
hold, and sets sail for a nearby outpost
owned by the Tenth Pit. The fate that
awaits the PCs there is best not dwelt
upon. The voyage and the eventual dis-
embarking represent chances for the
PCs to escape. (If this unfortunateturn of
events should happen, the DM can opt to
create a longer adventure dealing with
the Tenth Pit and Cain. If a conclusion is
needed, the PCs can be rescued from
Cain by another ship recruited by the
“Pots.” Regardless of the course of
action, this signals the end of the PCs’ ca-
reers as bounty hunters.)
Climatefleerrain: Any space
Frequency: Very rare
Organization: Solitary or pack
Active Cycle: Any
Diet: Omnivore
Intelligence: Semi (2-4)
Treasure: I
Alignment:

No. Appearing: l(2-5)

Armor Class: 2
-
Movement: 12, FI 30 (C)
Hit Dice: 10
THACO: 11
No. of Attacks: 2 +special
DamagelAttacks: 2-1611-12(bitekail)
Special Attacks: Breath weapon, magic use,
constriction
Special Defenses: Nil
Magic Resistance: 30%
Size: G (50’)
Morale: Champion (1 6)
X P Value: 8,000

The space drake resembles the radiant dragon, but without

wings. It has the same glittering pearl-like scales, and the
same serpentine body, albeit on a smaller scale. The space
drake has a dorsal fin which extends along its head and neck.
All common dragon attributes outlined in the Monstrous
Compendium apply to space drakes as well. Modifications to
the general description that apply specifically to fantasy
space are listed below.
Combat: Physical attacks comprise a bite and a smash
from the drake’s sinuous tail. If the tail smash hits, the drake
can constrict the target, inflicting 1-10points on each subse-
quent round (no ‘to hit’ roll required). The drake will main-
tain the constriction until the victim is dead, or until the
space drake receives 10 or more points of damage in a single
round from another character.When this happens. it decides
that the other character is more dangerous, releases the con-
striction victim, and tries for a tail smash against the new tar-
get on the next round. While being constricted, a character’s
attacks are at -3 and no spellcasting is possible. The space
drake is so flexible that it can bite and tail-smash the same
target on the same round.
In addition to its physical attacks, the space drake has a
breath weapon similar to that of the radiant dragon: glowing
pulses of force similar to magic missiles. It can breathe a sin-
gle pulse that inflicts 6d6 points of damage, or up to six
smaller pulses in the same round. (Thus they can breathe two
pulses, each inflicting 3d6 points, or six, each inflicting ld6.)
Each pulse can strike a separate target. These pulses are un-
erring, and will hit unless the victim makes a saving throw vs.
breath weapon. If the victim fails its saving throw, it is struck
for the appropriate amount of damage. If the victim makes
its saving throw, it has dodged that pulse, which then evapo-
rates. The space drake can use its breath weapon on physical
objects (such as a ship) as well, inflicting 1 hull point of dam-
age for every 10 hit points of damage its breath weapon
causes. Other physical objects must save vs. spell to survive
being hit by a pulse.
Space drakes also have some innate magical powers. They
can use the following spell-like abilities twice per day, one
per round, at the 10th level of ability: restore air, detectportal,
light.
Despite their lack of wings, space drakes fly using a natu-
ral flightlspelljarnmingability. In combat, space drakes pre-
fer to be in flight: on ground. they are limited to bite and
breath weapons.
HabitatSociety: Space drakes are totally spaceborne.
Like radiant dragons, they are normally solitary and very ter-
ritorial about their “turf,” which is often the space surround-
ing a hollowed-out asteroid or deserted dwarven citadel.
When they are found in numbers, they are usually a family
group, and make their lair in abandoned hulks, etc. In gen-
eral, their society is an unintelligent echo of their brethren,
the radiant dragon.
Ecology: Space drakes are omnivorous in the truest sense
of the word: they will eat anything. This includes plant mat-
ter, rocks and space dust, although they do seem to prefer
meat (and meat that’s still kicking, at that).
Although space drakes are capable of living in the phlogis-
ton, they don’t seem to enjoy it, and are rarely found there.
ClimateITerrain: Any (space or terrestrial)
Frequency: Very rare
Organization: Solitary
Active Cycle: Any
Diet: Special: see below
Intelligence: Semi-intelligent (2-4)
Treasure: Nil
Alignment: Chaotic Evil

Number Appearing: 1
Armor Class: -Was host
Movement: 9las host
Hit Dice: 7lhost’s hp
THACO: Special
No. of Attacks: Special
Damage per Attack: Special; Infestation
Special Attacks: See below
Special Defenses: See below
Magic Resistance: 75%las host
Size: nla
Morale: Fearless (20)
XP Value: 2000

The death shade is an energy parasite that feeds on the life

energy of dying creatures (any creature reduced to zero hp).
To generate this “food,” the death shade infests a host and pe-
riodically drives its host into a berserker rage.
Death shades, when encountered outside their hosts, ap-
pear as small, shifting wisps of smoke with vague outlines of
aquiline eyes. When infesting a host, the death shade is invis-
ible, having entered another body. Persons and objects capa-
ble of viewing invisible creatures see the death shade as a
gray mist which centers on the host’s eyes. Under alignment
detection, the death shade appears as a black “blight” on the
host’s alignment.
Combat: The death shade absorbs 1 energy level for every
hit die of an opponent killed within a 10’ radius, and can
store up to 40 energy levels at one time. The death shade
consumes these energy levels at a rate of 1 per day. For every
stored energy level less than 40, there is a 3% cumulative
chance per day that the death shade will cause its host to go
berserk, killing the first available target. If numerous targets
are presented. the death shade directs its host to pursue and
attack the target which offers the least potential harm to its
host. The host’s rage ends after 40 energy levels have been
absorbed by the death shade or no victims remain.
Death shades are rarely encountered without a host. Death
shades prefer hosts which provide the greatest amount of
food for it, i.e. a strong host like a fighter or a large carnivore,
but will accept any host for its own survival. Death shades do
not leave a host unless the host has been killed. If a PC be-
comes infested with a death shade, only a wish or limited wish
can remove it from the Pc‘s body. Amulets of Life Protection
are the only items which prevent death shade infestation.
If the creature’s current host is killed, it transfers out of the
host body, infesting the strongest creature within 20 feet,
and this creature becomes its new host. If it’s unable to make
such a transfer within 5 rounds of its host’s death, the death
shade dies. During this time of transfer, it can be attacked
with normal weapons or spells.
The death shade and its host become catatonic when
stored energy levels are at zero. The host and shade may re-
main catatonic for as many days as the host has Con points:
after that, both host and shade die. If a lifeform comes within
10 feet of a catatonic host, the death shade rouses the host in
ld3 rounds in a berserk rage to kill the creature for its en-
ergy. After the rage subsides, the host must make a save vs.
paralyzation or have permanent brain damage (subtract Id3
points from the host’s Intelligence).
HabitatlSociety: Death shades can infest any corporeal,
carbon-based life form, from small rodents to humans or de-
mihumans, all the way up to celestial dragons. Creatures
based of another elemental structure(storopers or magmen,
for example) are immune to death shade infestation. Death
shades can generate berserker rage no matter what the spe-
cies of their host (therefore they can turn even the most timid
creature into a raging killer).
Ecology: The death shade prefers to dwell where there are
large concentrations of potential hosts and victims:
among large herds of animals, or in the crowds of a city.
Some sages believe that many of the senseless murders en-
demic to the inner city are caused by death shades.
Death shades reproduceas a by-productof feeding. After a
death shade has absorbed life force from the death of 40 hit
dice or levels of creatures within a 24-hour period, it splits
into two death shades with 20 energy levels each. The sec-
ond shade immediately transfers to any creature within 20’.
If it can’t make the transferwithin 5 rounds, the second death
shade dies.
Death shades have a basic telepathy which can only iden-
tify the presence of one death shade to another. Thus, death
shades can detect each other’s presence in a 20 foot radius
and, if given a choice of targets during “feeding,” will attack
an uninfested creature before an infested host body.
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MONARCH ARM

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 Ground Floor Second Floor

THE OUTPOST
THE BARRE SINISTER 25Orx2OOr

One Square = 5 Feet

Asteroid Top View u

Asteroid Side View

 NPC Summary Table
Name AC Cn hp Sti Con Int Wis Cha THACO Remarks

Erik Bloodaxe 7 70' 15 13 14 11 9 14 10 AL CN(E); hand axe, long

sword + 7

mace
Gort 10 F7 41 17 11 14 10 6 7 14 ACNE; knife

Landa Darkcloud 3 P7 19 12 11 9 12 16 10 16 ALCE

Lara Mooncrow 3 W8 18 9 12 8 16 10 13 18 AL L E dagger +2. dai

wheel lock pistol

Manta 10 W12 30 9 12 10 17 11 8 17 ALN
Marla Mornstar 10 W12 28 9 11 11 16 12 12 17 ALCG

dagger
Raven 6 F8N5 51 15 13 13 16 11 12 13 AL N(E); wand of mag
missiles club __

wheel lock pistol

Talis Mornstar 10 F3 19 14 12 13 12 10 12 18 ALCG

dagger of venom,

dagger
Vissq 5 F10 74 16 12 16 10 8 9 IO. AL N(E); bastard sword,

Wallis 5 F6 40 14 13 14 12 11 12 15 AL CG; long sword

 This table presents the vital statistics for some of the monsters featured in this adventure. Use it for handy
reference during play, and refer to the Monstrous Compendium volumes and to the Lorebook of the Void for details.

Name AC HD THACO #AT Dmg MV Remarks

1I4 20 12 Br 3
1+1 19 9
18 5 2012-201 12 Fl48 breath weapon,
4-40 magic use, 45% MR
Death Shade -8lhost’s 71host’s Special 1 Special 91as host AL C E infestation
Ephemeral 5 15 1 1-4 18 AL NE: drain Intelligence,

12
2-20+10 resistant to fire
Frost Giant I 1-8or 12 AL C E hurl rocks for 2-20,
2-16+9 immrvious to cold
9

speciallby 6lvictim

Homonculus I 1-3 6 FI 18 AL N; bite causes sleep

Krajen (immature) I I 1-3 3 AL N; paralysis
6

weapon to hit
Mind Flayer 3+4 11 4 special 12 AL LE, mind blast, 90%
magic resistance
5 15 1-3/1-3/1-6 6 .slowing poison
2 19 1-3+Special 6 FI 24 ): poison sting,
eon power
Rat 7 114 20 1 1 15 AL N(E); 5% chance of
serious disease
18
11-12 12F148

Space Newt 5 3 17 1 1-8 8 FI 24 AL N E breath weapon,

30% magic resistance
Spectre 2 13 1 1-8 15 FI 30 AL L E energy drain, + 1
or better weapon to hit
19 1 1 6 W b 15 AL N: poison
13 5 o r 3 1-4(x4)12-5, 18 AL CN; paralysis; dodge
weapon missiles on roll of 9 +
Umber Hulk 11 3 3-1213-121 6 AL CE: confusion
1-10

Wraith 1-6
only by silver or + 1 or
better magical weapon
15 2-5 18 frost breath for
’ range)
19 1 1-8 6
Zombie (neogi) 3 6 15 3 1-4/1-411-8 4 AL N
Zombie (umber hulk) 2 3+8 11 3 3-1213-1Z 4 AL N
1-20
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